To Tame a Secretary
by Janiya07
Summary: A businessman with a taste for a certain pink-haired secretary. A young woman who sacrificed her dreams to support her family through its darkest hour. When sparks fly and tempers flare, can they look beyond perception to the truth hiding underneath?
1. An Odd Boss

A/N: This story will be told in short chapters so that I can update more often and stay motivated.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto...ah, but if only I did...

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><p>"This will be your desk."<p>

Sakura let her fingers drift over the polished mahogany wood. "Thank you, Mister Uzumaki."

The blonde man with dazzling blue eyes winked at her. "Call me Naruto. I hate formalities."

"Oh, no, sir, that would be inappropriate."

Her new boss shrugged. "Suit yourself. I'm still calling you Sakura."

She folded her arms across her chest. "And I'm still calling you Mister Uzumaki."

A slow grin spreads across his tanned face. "We will see. For now, get yourself acquainted with your desk and computer. Organize your pencils, play some solitaire. If anybody calls in the next half-hour, tell them I'm taking a nap."

Sakura was nodding attentively up until the last half of his comment. Then she sputtered, "Tell them what?"

He waved a hand in the air as he walked into his office behind her desk. "That I'm taking a nap. Long day yesterday. I deserve it." Two seconds later, he poked his head back out. "Ah, that's with the exception of anybody with the Uchiha name attached to their introduction." His brow wrinkled a moment in contemplative thought. "Tell them I'm in a meeting with my staff concerning a…ah…mishap in the weekly report."

Her brows rose. "You want me to lie?"

"Are you planning to assist me or not, Sakura?"

"Yes, but – "

"Then be a good girl, play some solitaire, and cover my back."

Sakura felt her fingers twitch. _What kind of boss is this?_ "Sir, I really must object."

His lips curled into a dramatic pout. "Please?"

"No."

"I'll give you an hour for lunch."

Sakura considered this. "Deal."

She should have held her ground. The phone rang out of control. Apparently her eccentric boss was in high demand. Which was understandable considering he is Director of Marketing at Uchiha Technology. And Sakura found herself lying more times than she had a brain to keep track of.

"_Uchiha Technology Marketing Department, this is Sakura, how may I assist you…oh, I'm terribly sorry sir, he is on a break right now."_

_"Uchiha Tech…my apologies, ma'am, there is an emergency involving one of his employees that he is attending to. He will be a moment."_

_"Uchiha Tech…sir, I can't hear you…sir, there's terrible static…Naruto who…what…"_

After a while it became a game to keep her amused when her boss's half hour nap turned into an hour…

_"Uchiha…he's having a terrible case of upset stomach. He is currently indisposed right now."_

_"…I sincerely apologize, ma'am, he lost his brain and he's busy searching for it…"_

But then the wrong person called and their name did not include Uchiha…

Sakura was twirling a pencil in her hand while puzzling out a game of Spider Solitaire when the phone rang for the umpteenth time. Sighing, she picked it up. "Uchiha Technology Marketing Department, this is Sakura, how may I assist you?"

"Would you please forward me to Mr. Uzumaki?"

"May I ask who's calling, ma'am?"

"Tell him Hinata is on the line."

"Ah, Ms. Hinata, I'm very sorry about this but-"

The voice on the other end came across as sickly sweet. "Ms. Sakura, please don't spout nonsense. What is he really doing?"

Sakura's shoulders fell. "Ah, he's, uh…"

"It's alright, you may tell me, ma'am. I promise not to be upset with you."

Sakura's shoulders deflated. "He's taking a nap, Ms. Hinata."

There was a long pause on the other end, followed by an icy voice; "He's. Taking. A. Nap?"

Suddenly the phone was yanked from Sakura's hand and pressed against Mister Uzumaki's ear. "Hinata! Darling, how are you?"

A long pause followed by the steady flow of color draining from her boss' face.

"Uh, haha, um, I wasn't technically…"

A wince.

"I, um, babe, why don't I send this call to my private phone and we can chat…"

Another wince. Naruto quickly pushed a button on the phone set and darted back into his office.

Sakura stared at the door that slammed shut behind him. _What in the world?_

"That would be Hinata Uzumaki, Naruto's wife," a smooth, deep voice spoke from behind Sakura's turned head. "She's also Director of Work Ethics and Production."

Sakura turned to the speaker and blinked. Twice.


	2. Mortified

Disclaimer: I don't own. So please don't sue. You wouldn't be able to squeeze more than a penny out of my fried bank account...

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><p>Silky raven hair framed a strong but slender face. Eyes full of icy stillness stared down at her. Eyes – deep as midnight – that were accentuated by long, black eyelashes lowered to a contemplative half-mast. Or a simmering half-mast, depending on which way the observer chose to view it. Pale, ivory skin dipped down and disappeared beneath a black, collared shirt without a hint of imperfection. His clean, maroon tie drew her attention to a defined chest…that led her eyes to broad but not bulky shoulders.<p>

Heat climbed up Sakura's neck until she was sure her face was bright red. "I, uh, I'm sorry. What?"

"Hinata Uzumaki. She's Naruto's wife." His voice was liquid baritone yet strong as a rushing river. "Not a woman to be trifled with."

She licked her lips and felt the sudden urge to fan herself. When did the room grow so hot? "I, uh, oh."

If possible, her face only flushed more. How embarrassing to grow so tongue-tied. But it wasn't her fault the man was too blasted pretty for his own good. Made a girl want to either scream from jealousy or run to the bathroom to hide a nosebleed. Sakura was leaning more toward the latter. Her fingers twitched to check her nose to ensure she didn't embarrass herself further, but she clasped them tightly in her lap.

The man tilted his head, just slightly to the left. No expression so much as flickered across his face. "And you are?"

"M-me?"

The smallest twitch of his lips followed her stuttering. "Yes, you."

"S-Sakura. Sakura Haruno. Mr. Uzumaki's new secretary."

"Sakura," he drawled out her name as though tasting every syllable. "How…_exquisite_ it is to meet you."

Apparently her face could grow hotter. And it did. "It's, uh, nice to meet you too."

The dark pools of his eyes drifted down her face and even lower. "Indeed."

To Sakura's immense relief, the door to Naruto Uzumaki's office opened at that moment and her boss stepped out. But then he stopped cold at the sight of the black haired man standing in front of her desk. His blue eyes flickered from the man, to her, and then back again.

The blonde's eyes narrowed. "Mr. Uchiha. Can I help you?"

Every blood vessel in Sakura's body froze. Uchiha? As in Itachi Uchiha? CEO of Uchiha Technology?

She felt herself sink deeper into her chair. She'd been checking out her boss's boss.

She wanted to utterly _die_ from mortification.


	3. Attentions

Disclaimer: I *sobs* don't *sobs* own *sobs

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><p>Sakura sharpened twenty pencils while waiting for the two men to reappear from Mr. Uzumaki's office. She reorganized her rather limited collection of files. She typed up three fake reports an absolute nonsense. And just when she ran out of anything to do that will make her appear busy, the office door opened behind her.<p>

She refused to turn around. She refused to breathe.

Her fingers flew across the keyboard at record speed.

"Twenty ways to improve Mr. Uzumaki's production," a deep voice murmured in her ear.

She jumped several inches off her seat and, without thinking, shut down the open Word file. Sucking in a breath, she stared at her now blank screen.

"Good luck with that," the voice continued. His warm breath ghosted over her ear lobe.

"M-Mr. Uchiha?" she stuttered, still too nervous to look behind her.

"The one and only."

"Would you please step back a few feet?"

"I think not. I'm observing your work."

She flew out of her seat and around her desk in three seconds flat. "Mr. Uchiha, that…that…" She was at a complete loss for words.

The black haired man only looked at her through those quiet, calculating eyes. She felt like a mouse being watched by a hawk. The hawk circled overhead, around and around, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

He stepped around her desk. "Call me Itachi."

She hurried to the other side, pulling her chair in front of her. "I think not."

Again he stepped toward her. She scooted in the opposite direction.

"You know," he drawled, "it's quite fine. We put little emphasis on formalities here at Uchiha Technology."

Her eyes narrowed. "Sir, I think you put low emphasis on _work ethics_ here at Uchiha Technology."

A slow grin turns his face from observer to predator. "The concepts are one and the same."

"W-what?" she sputtered. "You have no issues with that?"

"Not at the cost of my own…" his eyes lower down then up, "interests."

"_Enough."_ Mr. Uzumaki stood in the doorway to his office; arms crossed, eyes darkened to a disapproving glare. "Uchiha, if you have no further business with me, I must ask you to leave so that _my_ secretary may return to her job."

The man's grin only widened. "As you wish, _Uzumaki._ I have never been one to come between an employee and her job."

Mr. Uzumaki rolled his eyes. "Itachi, get your scrawny behind off my floor. You're wasting my work hours."

"Ah ah ah," the Uchiha wagged a finger in the air, "I'm not the one napping on the job. And if I'm not mistaken, nor am I the one who will be sleeping on the couch for the next week."

Her boss's brow twitched. Uzumaki pointed down the hall. "The elevator is that way."

Itachi Uchiha winked at Sakura. "Must have hit a sore spot."

"_Itachi…" _

The man gave a low chuckle but walked away.

"Sakura."

She resisted the urge to bite her lower lip from nervousness. "Yes, Mr. Uzumaki."

"Naruto."

"Mr. Uzumaki, are you really going to press that issue now?"

He sighed. "Will you join me in my office, please?"

Sakura felt a knot tighten in her chest. "Um, of course."

Inside his office, the blonde sat down in the leather chair behind a large, cherry oak desk. Paperwork covered almost every surface in a disorganized heap.

She made a mental note to organize his office the next time he steps out. That is, if she still had a job. She took a deep breath. "Mr. Uzumaki, I am so sorry for what happened out there. I never meant to cause any uncomfortable situations. I can assure you that I employ the highest work ethics of anybody you will ever meet. I understand if this means you must let me go, but, sir, I really need this job."

He rubbed a hand down his face. "Take a seat, Sakura."

Her heart sank. With lead feet, she walked to the chair across from him and sat.

"Sakura, I need you to understand something. Itachi Uchiha is one of my most trusted friends."

_Here it is. He's firing me. Oh god, how am I going to feed Soya? _She squeezed her eyes shut.

"But he's also a high-class whore."

Her eyes shot open. "What?"


	4. Little Soya

Disclaimer: I refuse to repeat it. It's depressing and this story is supposed to be funny and uplifting. _I refuse to SAY IT! _Okay, okay. I don't own Naruto. _OKAY?_

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><p>Sakura stepped off the bus a block away from Soya's school. Mister Uzumaki's voice kept ringing in her head.<p>

"_Sakura, he's a good man but he's always had the world bow to him. He's never had to bow to the world. Do you understand what I'm saying?" At her nod, he continued, "So please don't feel pressured in any way to return his attentions. And there's absolutely no reason to let him down easy just because he's my boss. You are my employee and he knows better than to mess with my department."_

"_Thank you, Mr. Uzumaki," Sakura said, feeling like she could breathe easy again. _

"_In fact, with my wife being Director of Work Ethics and all, I really must insist that you do not return his attentions. I like my head right where it is."_

_She grimaced. "Of course not, sir. And work aside, I really have no interest in a man who cannot follow the rules of his own company."_

"_Well, all things considered, Itachi doesn't own this company. He's just the CEO. His father owns it and demands that Itachi run it if he has any interest in one day receiving a rather extensive inheritance. This is Itachi's way of rebelling."_

"_By sleeping with half the employees?"_

_Her boss sat back with a grin, his finger scratching his cheek. "Ah, well, to say half is a bit dramatic. He's actually very picky. But I'm afraid I can't defend him much further than that."_

"_I see."_

"_But don't worry! He's ultimately harmless. Before Hinata and I got together, he tried to flirt with her for a week without any luck. Finally she got fed up and said, - and I quote – 'Mr. Uchiha, if your personal gems are causing you such trouble that you can't ignore them through a single workday, I would be happy to remove them for you and sell them on the black market.' He never came on to her again. I witnessed the whole interaction. That was the day I fell in love."_

Sakura smiled at the memory as she approached the school. She had to meet this Hinata lady one day. Sounded like her kind of woman.

"Sakura!" Soya came running down the sidewalk with arms outstretched, her little pink pigtails bobbing.

"Soya!" She grabbed her six year-old sister and lifted her into a tight hug. "How are you, sweetie?"

"I'm good. I made a friend, sissy."

"Did you?" Sakura asked, taking her sister's hand and leading her in the direction of home.

"Yup. Her name is Ayame and she has black hair and she's really nice."

"Well I'm glad you two are friends now."

"Me too. Is Mommy home?"

"No, honey, she's working an extra shift at the café. And then she's going to visit Daddy."

Her sister's shoulders dropped in disappointment. "Oh."

"But I have something that might cheer you up."

Soya's eyes brightened just a little. "Really?"

Sakura held up a small brown paper bag. "Right here."

Soya made a grab for it but Sakura teasingly lifted it above her reach. "What is it, sissy?"

Sakura made a thoughtful look. "Hmm. I'm not sure."

"Can I see? Can I see? Please?"

Laughing, Sakura handed her the bag. Soya opened it and looking in, her eyes lit up all the way. "For me, sissy?" Before waiting an answer, she reached in and pulled out the pastry and bit into it. "Mmmm, thank you, sissy," she said with her mouth full and cheeks bulging.

"That was actually dessert," Sakura said dryly. "There's fruit and bread in there for dinner."

Soya gave the widest grin she could with her lips pressed together.

Sakura didn't have the heart to rebuke her. She looked so happy stuffing that pastry in her mouth and skipping along beside her. A warm feeling filled her heart. Soya would be going to bed with a full stomach tonight and, if all goes Sakura's way, every night thereafter. Thank goodness the cafeteria at her work pulled meal payments out of pending checks cause she didn't get paid until Friday. All she had to do was grab a bit extra for Soya. And when she did get paid, she was taking her sister shopping for new clothes and filling their cabinets with groceries.

Things were looking brighter for them. And applying for this job was worth it.

Even if she did have to deal with a CEO who thought he was a hormonal teenager.

Even if she did have to lie on her application.

Soya was worth it.

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><p>AN: I wrote a little treat just for you, beloved readers! My way of saying thank you for reading! (it's on my profile, named Playing the Player) Enjoy ;)


	5. Her Fiance

Disclaimer: _I don't own Naruto. I never will. And it sucks. _

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><p>Sakura walked into the office a half-hour early to find Mr. Uzumaki's door ajar and the light on. Wondering if her boss was in early as well, she rapped lightly on the door, which swung it open the rest of the way.<p>

Peeking inside, she called, "Mr. Uzumaki?"

Nothing. She stepped further in and peered behind the large pile of folders on his desk. Bingo. Mr. Uzumaki was passed out on top of another large stack of paperwork.

Smiling softly, she tiptoed out of the office. She would wake him at eight when it was time for work.

Settling down at her desk, she pulled up her work email and began browsing. Frowning, she clicked open one with Itachi Uchiha's name on it.

_Dear Sakura,_

_It was a pleasure to welcome you to my company. _(She raised a brow at that. Welcome her? More like chased her around her desk.) _I can see that you will be a great asset to both Uchiha Technology and Naruto. He needs an excellent secretary like you. Someone who will keep him organized in his tasks and disciplined in his time. He may be my laziest employee, but he is also my best. You will serve him well._

_And on that note, it would be my pleasure to assist you in anything you may need. Feel free to email me directly or, even better, stop by my office in person. (_She rolled her eyes. No need to be too forward, Mr. Uchiha.)

_Have a great day,_

_Itachi._

Sakura shook her head. It was time to nail this in the butt before her CEO's hormones got out of hand. Hitting the reply button, she flexed her fingers and began typing;

_Mister Uchiha, Itachi,_

_Thank you for your gracious greeting. In fact, I do have a question. You see, my fiancé was a Navy Seal, Special Forces, you know the kind, throws punches before he asks questions. And with him being a 300 lb weight lifter, you can imagine the damage that would do. Well, he recently got into this horrible bar fight. You see, we were having a drink and a young man came over to flirt with me. Well, my fiancé is fiercely overprotective of little old me and he got in a fight. Unfortunately, his opponent came with a group and you can imagine, things grew out of hand. But don't worry, I'm happy to report he won the bar fight, even though the numbers weren't in his favor. Eight to one…that's the kind of raw power I fell in love with. _

_Unfortunately, he sustained a few minor injuries. I took him to the emergency room to be safe. We left reassured but then we were mailed a hideous hospital bill. So my question is, is it possible to add my fiancé to my health insurance? He just separated from the military and is not insured. _

_Thank you!_

_Your loyal employee,_

_Sakura Haruno_

Clicking the sent button, she sat back in her seat and smirked. Problem solved.

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><p>AN: Sorry i haven't replied to reviews :( Being a college student and behind on my homework is not a good combination. But I will reply as soon as I can. Thank you so much for taking the time to read! And thank you to the reviewers I can't reply to cause they didn't log in. You're still awesome!


	6. The Kitchen

Disclaimer: . Enough said.

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><p>READ THE AUTHORS NOTE! At the bottom of the chapter. Pretty please? :P<p>

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><p>Sakura tapped again on Mr. Uzumaki's door.<p>

A soft snore answered her.

She knocked louder.

He grunted, shifted his head to face the other way and fell silent.

Sakura's brow twitched. It was past eight. The man needed to wake up. Stepping into his office, she stomped her feet as she approached his desk in hopes the sound would wake him. Nope. Blonde head remained plastered to the papers. Sighing, she nudged his shoulder.

"Mm-guh," he murmured. "Lemme 'lone, Hinata. Tired."

She sighed. "Mr. Uzumaki."

He replied with a garbled snore.

She rapped on his desktop.

Nothing.

She rapped harder.

His hand moved as if to wave something away, but then he fell still.

Sakura glared murderously at him. "Mr. Uzumaki, you are on the clock!"

His snores grew louder.

"You won't wake him that way, Ms. Haruno," a soft voice spoke behind her.

Sakura whirled around to see a small woman with long black hair smiling back at her. The woman had the most amazing light grey eyes that pierced with intelligence yet softened with friendliness.

Stepping forward, the stranger held out her hand. "My name's Hinata Uzumaki."

Sakura's mouth formed an awed 'O.' _So this was the woman who could tame both Naruto Uzumaki and Itachi Uchiha._ Taking Hinata's hand, she gave it a firm shake. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Uzumaki. I've heard great things about you."

A soft blush covered the small woman's cheeks. "Ah, if it came from my husband, it is likely to be greatly exaggerated."

"I doubt it, he sounded pretty sincere."

Hinata laughed. "One thing you will learn about your employer, Ms. Haruno, is that when he sounds the most sincere is when he's telling the biggest fib."

Sakura raised a brow. "Even when the case involves an Uchiha?"

"Which one? Sasuke or Itachi?"

"Sasuke?"

"Itachi's younger brother. He is Uchiha Technology's vice president. You probably haven't been here long enough to have met him."

"Oh. No. He was referring to Itachi Uchiha."

"Ah. That is the exception then. One never exaggerates with Itachi Uchiha. There is never any need."

"So it is true that you threatened to castrate him?"

Hinata blinked, then burst out laughing. "Is that what we are speaking of? One does not threaten the eldest Uchiha. It is equivalent to showing nervousness before a lion. No, absolutely not. I never threatened. I made a promise."

Sakura shook her head. "You are my new hero, Hinata Uzumaki."

The small woman giggled. "Well, truth be told, Ms. Haruno, Itachi was never truly interested in me. He made some passes because he knew Naruto liked me but was too shy to admit it. They like to ruffle one another's feathers."

A particularly loud snore brought their attention back to the current problem.

Hinata cast a gentle smile toward her husband. "He left for work really early this morning so he could catch up on paperwork. He must have fallen back asleep before he accomplished much. He's so adorable when he's sleeping, don't you think so?"

Sakura glanced back at her boss. His head was propped on one arm, blonde hair disheveled and laying across closed eyes, lips moving with every sleep-induced mumble and snore, a trail of drool leaking from the corner of his mouth.

Sakura tilted her head to the side. Squinted. Tilted her head to the other side. "I…guess so. Anyway, how do I wake him up?"

"I will show you. But first, I must give you rule number one for beginning a day with an exhausted Naruto; always make sure there is a cup of coffee within easy reach."

Sakura looked around the office but found no mugs or coffee maker on his side table or bookshelves. "Okay, where do I get coffee."

"Do you know where the nearest employee kitchen is?"

"Yes, down the hall and to the right."

"Right. There's always brewed coffee in there. But never use it. It's cheap and the girl who starts the coffee every morning makes it so heavy it could knock over an elephant. You have to take the elevator to the fifth floor and turn left. It's at the end of the hallway. That's the only coffee that Naruto will drink in this entire building. He'll want three packets of sugar and," Hinata grimaced, "lots of cream. Just eye it until the coffee is a light brown. Bring three mugs."

Sakura's eyes bugged out. "_Three mugs?_"

"Yes, he'll need all of them."

"But _three_?"

Hinata rolled her eyes. "Yes. He's…ridiculous, I know."

Shaking her head, Sakura walked out of office but stopped short when Mrs. Uzumaki called her name. Turning around, she said, "Yes?"

"I forgot to tell you, the pin to get into the kitchen is 2706."

"The kitchen requires a pin?"

"That one does."

Shrugging it off, Sakura stepped around her desk in front of Naruto's office and walked down the hallway. She passed several cubicles with workers typing away in front of computers. Some offered friendly waves that she returned a bit shyly. Most were wary of getting close to the boss' new secretary so she had yet to make any real friends among them but she told herself it was only her second day on the job.

After taking the elevator to the fifth floor, she walked past a few desks whose occupants looked at her curiously but didn't say anything. The doors behind them seemed to lead to offices so she assumed they were secretaries like her. When she arrived at the end of the hallway, she saw a door with a numeric device above the doorknob so she assumed this was the kitchen Hinata described. She entered the code and the red light above the key pad turned green. Pushing open the door, she raised an eyebrow in appreciation.

This kitchen was quite different from the one she used on the third floor. The floor was tiled with smooth stone slabs. Granite countertops drew the eye to rich cherry cabinetry. Stainless steel appliances shone to polished perfection. This was definitely the kitchen for executives and above.

Feeling a bit out of place, she hurried to the black coffee maker that had steaming coffee already brewed and waiting. Opening the cabinets, she began searching for mugs. But when she heard a soft click and the kitchen door open, she spun around, search forgotten.

Eyes like rich pools of black liquid stared back at her. Slowly, a slim black eyebrow quirked. "Sakura?"

"M-Mr. Uchiha," she gasped. Why did she suddenly feel like a child caught with her hand in a cookie jar? "G-good morning, sir."

The second brow slowly rose. "Good morning."

Sakura fiddled with the bottom hem of her purple blouse.

His eyes lowered to follow the movement.

She quickly jerked her hand away.

His eyes drifted up to meet hers. "May I assist you, Sakura?"

Her hands gripped the edge of the counter behind her to stop their blasted fiddling. "Uh, no. No, I'm just here to get coffee."

Spinning back around to hide her completely unnecessary embarrassment, she reopened the cabinets. She felt his eyes boring into her back as she worked her way around the kitchen. _Where are the freaking mugs?_

_Aha!_ Finally, she found them on a top shelf. And her heart sank.

They were too high.

Biting her lip, she lifted on her tiptoes and strained her arm to reach…just…a…handle…

Suddenly something warm and firm pressed against her back and her entire bodily system froze over. A long, (and in the back of her mind, she noted; quite muscular) arm stretched past her frozen fingers and pulled down the mug she'd been reaching for. Once the cup was on the counter, the pressure against her back moved away.

Sakura scurried several feet to the side and stood trying to hide the sudden heaving breaths infiltrating her lungs. "I…uh…" she forced her hands to her side to avoid clasping them over her hammering heart.

"Yes, Sakura?"

She stared at the man, completely unable to form words. How can he calmly stand there like he hadn't stepped past her personal space, pressed his body against hers and…and…she wanted to rip her hair out! _Get yourself together, Sakura Haruno. What are you? Twelve? This is your CEO!_

Taking several deep breaths to calm herself, she said, "Mr. Uchiha, would you kindly retrieve two more mugs for me? I'm afraid I can't reach."

He tilted his head. "Certainly."

He stepped back up to the cabinet and reached for two more mugs with perfect ease. Sakura found herself staring at the long tail of silky black hair tied back at the nape of his neck and hanging down his back. She would kill for hair that perfect. _I bet it never gets tangled,_ she mentally grumbled to herself.

Setting the two mugs beside the first, he stepped back. His dark eyes watched her steadily. "Is there anything else I may assist you with?"

Her eyes darted to the mugs, then back at him. "I…No, Mr. Uchiha. That will be fine. Thank you."

Again he tilted his head in acknowledgement but didn't move to continue his own business or leave.

Swallowing a lump of nervousness, she reminded herself what Mr. Uzumaki had warned her about Itachi. She reminded herself that his attentions to her was just his way of rebelling against his father. But somehow, that didn't ease the tightness of her chest.

Brushing a loose lock of pink hair behind her ears, Sakura grabbed the mugs and set them beside the coffee maker. "Mr. Uchiha, forgive me for asking, but were you able to check your email this morning?"

"Itachi."

She looked up at him. "I'm sorry?"

His face remained smooth, emotionless, and completely centered on her. "I believe I asked you to call me Itachi."

She forced her eyes to narrow. "And I believe I told you that I wouldn't. It's not appropriate."

"Should not the CEO be able to declare what is or is not appropriate for his own company?"

She shook her head. "Some things are universal, _Mr. Uchiha._ Now, your email?"

The corner of his lips twitched. "I checked it."

Sakura returned her attention to the coffee and forced her hands to remain steady while filling the mugs. "And were you able to read the one I sent you, sir?"

"Yes."

She pressed her lips together and poured coffee into the second mug. "And were you able to answer?"

"Healthcare is available to all employees and their dependents three months after being hired. However, a fiancé is not considered a dependent until the marriage contract is signed."

Sakura nodded, moving to the next cup. Good. He got the idea.

"However, an exception can be made for justifying circumstances."

She forced her voice to stay firm and sound hopeful. "Really?"

"Absolutely. We try our best to accommodate hard working employees. But only if the case is genuine and not completely made up."

Sakura's hand jerked and she spilled coffee all over the counter. "_Oh!" _Almost dropping the coffee pot on the counter, she jumped back to avoid getting the hot liquid on one of her few sets of work clothes.

"Please, allow me." Mr. Uchiha smoothly stepped between her and the counter and, pulling paper towels from the nearby dispenser, began mopping up the mess.

This time, Sakura's hands did fly up to cover her thrumming heart. "I'm so sorry."

"It's perfectly alright," he said, wiping up the last of the coffee and throwing away the soaked paper towels. Then, instead of moving out of the way, he filled up the last cup.

As she watched him pour, Sakura made a final attempt to cover her surprise. "So, d-do employees regularly make up such cases in order to extend healthcare to non-dependents?"

Returning the coffee pot, he reached for the small bowl containing white packets of sugar. "For Naruto, right?"

"Uh, yes."

Nodding, he tore open three packets at a time and poured them into the first cup. Then he did the same to the next. "In answer to your question, Sakura, no, they usually don't. In fact, I only discovered my first case today."

Sakura was certain her stomach just dropped a few inches. "Oh?"

The Uchiha chuckled. Emptying the last three packets, he reached for the cream dispenser and poured a good amount in each mug. Then, he reached for one of the thin wood sticks and began to stir the coffee. "Forgive me this question, but I must ask; was your fiancé dishonorably discharged?"

_Dishonorably…_? "No, of course not. He's a very, uh, honorable man."

"Odd." Itachi finished stirring the last cup. All three were the exact light-brown consistency Hinata described.

"Odd?" Sakura echoed with sweat breaking out on the back of her neck.

"Yes," he said, turning around to face her. "Because when all service members are at least Other Than Honorably discharged, they are still entitled to several years of healthcare with the Veterans Affairs. Therefore, your…" a small smirk formed on his lips, "…fiancé should not be in need of health insurance from Uchiha Technology. And as a newly discharged veteran, he would know this. In fact, as his partner, _you_ would know this. If, that is, such an engagement exists."

Sakura blanched.

Itachi chuckled. "But don't worry, Sakura. I am willing to ignore such an oversight. Just…the next time you try to tell a little fib, I must recommend doing your research first." Then, without skipping a beat, he gestured to the coffee. "They should be to Naruto's preference. And in that box on the table are some bagels. If I may suggest you perhaps eating one? You are far too thin for your height." Too stunned to reply, Sakura's eyes slid to the small table in the corner of the kitchen.

"Now, if you will excuse me?" With a small bow and another chuckle, Mr. Uchiha left the kitchen, closing the door softly behind him.

Two paralyzed minutes later, Sakura grabbed the three mugs and all but ran from the fifth floor. She forgot about the bagels.

Arriving at Mr. Uzumaki's office flushed and out of breath, she set the coffee on his desk and stepped back.

Hinata rose from the chair by the bookshelf. If she noticed Sakura's frazzled appearance she was kind enough not to say anything. "That certainly took a while just to grab some coffee," she said with a soft smile.

"I ran into Mr. Uchiha." She inwardly cursed how breathless she sounded.

But the other woman only nodded. "I'm not surprised. It is his private kitchen after all."

Sakura choked on thin air and sank into the chair Hinata just vacated. "H-his _private_ kitchen?"

"Mm-hmm. Naruto always bribes the pin from Itachi's secretary. Apparently she has a weakness for chocolate, blue eyes, and dimples." She shrugged. "Now, watch, this is the nice way to wake him up. Observe." Hinata set one of the coffee mugs near her husband's face and gave his shoulder a firm shake. "Naruto, wake up. There's coffee."

Mr. Uzumaki only mumbled incoherently and returned to snoring.

His wife didn't look surprised. "And there is the way you will need to use far more often. Again, pay close attention. There is an art to this." Stepping to the sleeping man's left, Hinata pulled back a hand and, with a swing that twisted the entire frame of her small body, she smacked her husband upside his head.

Naruto jerked up with a yelp, which tilted back his chair and both he and the chair went tumbling into a bedraggled heap on the floor.

"Good morning, honey," Hinata said with a wide grin.

Sakura could only stare while running three words across her brain. _His private kitchen. His private kitchen? His private kitchen?_

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><p><em>AN:_ There you have it. The much requested long chapter. So here is the deal. My much beloved reviewers have been requesting longer chapters. I can do that. I can do longer chapters, which means more indepth characterization and description and all that jazz. This chapter is my example for that. So my question is, do you, as the readers, want short chapters and quick updates like I've been doing, or longer chapters like this and longer times between updates (1-2x a week, depending on how inspired I am. Reviews, btw, will inspire me *hint, hint*). Let me know; majority rules.


	7. Ino

Disclaimer: You know that drill. I know the drill. We all wish the drill wasn't the drill but it's still the drill and the drill still sucks and I want to beat it over the head with a club and kill it.

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><p>A tired Naruto Uzumaki was a walking grouch who grumbled about paperwork, accomplished little, and drank ungodly amounts of coffee. Thank the heavens that after the third mug, he was functional enough to drag his own behind up to the fifth floor and get more. He tried asking Sakura to fetch him another mug but she turned on her heel and slammed the door in his face. He got the idea.<p>

Now, a few hours after the disaster in her CEO's personal kitchen, Sakura sat at her desk, staring at an opened but unread email from one of the junior employees. Her fingers thrummed against the soft wood of her desk. She needed to do something about Itachi Uchiha. Her eyes left the computer screen and glowered at the small bag sitting on the edge of her desk where Mr. Uchiha's secretary, Ino Yamanaka, had left it. Attached to the bag had been a small note neatly taped to its folded down opening.

Her eyes drifted to the note.

_Sakura, _

_I recommended that you eat a bagel. But upon return to the kitchen, I noticed that you must have left in such a hurry that you forgot my recommendation. Therefore I have asked Ino to bring you down a few. I hope they find you well._

_Itachi_

_P.S. Feel free to use my kitchen whenever it should meet your pleasure._

Sakura scowled. This was out of control. The man was impossible. Where did he get of making health recommendations to her? First he has the audacity to flirt with her, then question her fake fiancé, and now he's making sure she eats properly? It was ridiculous. It was indecent. It was unacceptable.

He may think his handsome face is a divine gift to females everywhere but he certainly wasn't a divine anything to her. He was her CEO. He was essentially her boss. He was behaving completely inappropriately for his position. She needed to talk to him.

Sakura straightened in her seat. Yes, that's what she would do. She would talk to him. Standing up, she knocked on Mr. Uzumaki's door.

"Enter."

She poked her head in. Her employer's blonde head was ducked over his pile of paperwork; pen scribbling furiously. She was fairly sure little of what he wrote would be readable to even him tomorrow morning. "Mr. Uzumaki, I'm heading to the ladies room. Is there anything you need while I am gone?"

He shook his head and waved her off without looking up.

Closing the door, she headed for the elevators. Upon arriving at the fifth floor, she walked up to the closest secretary desk and asked the man working there for directions to Mr. Uchiha's office. Once there, she approached the woman with long blond hair, Ms. Yamanaka.

The secretary looked up from her computer screen and flashed a smile. "Sakura! Nice to see you again. Did you enjoy Mr. Uchiha's bagels?"

"Very much," Sakura lied. "In fact, I wanted to thank him in person. It very considerate of him to go out of his way to get me food."

"Yes, Mr. Uchiha is a very kind man. Maybe a little too kind, you know what I mean?"

Sakura had to consciously force her brow not to twitch. _All too well._ She settled for a neutral smile.

Ino's glanced at the door behind her and leaned forward. "And between you and me," she said in a hushed tone, "he's not too bad in the looks department, either. You have no idea how many women here want to eat me alive for getting this position instead of them. They think it's wasted on a married woman." She held up her left hand to show off the little diamond sparkling there. "Some even think the position isn't wasted at all, if you know what I mean. And that makes them hate me even more. But I would never cheat on my Shikamaru." She shrugged and then said with a wink, "He's too much of a genius. I would never get away with it."

Sakura laughed. "A man too smart for his own good is not always a good thing."

"Absolutely not." Holding up one manicured finger, Ino picked up her phone. "Let me give Mr. Uchiha a call and see if he's available to speak with you."

"Thank you."

The other woman nodded and punched in a few numbers on the key pad. A second later; "Mr. Uchiha? Ms. Haruno is out here to speak with you. Would you like me to send her in? Very well."

She put down the phone with a click. "You can go in, Sakura."

Sakura turned to the CEO's door and steeled herself. Then, stepping forward, she knocked.

Immediately, a smooth baritone answered; "Enter."

Taking a deep breath, she pushed open the door

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><p>AN: So opinions are literally tied as to chapter length so I will simply continue as I have been. However, if a minute goes by between updates, then I should have a longer chapter to show for it.


	8. Itachi's Office

Discaimer: I'm sure you can fill in the blank; I dont _!

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><p>Mr. Uchiha's office was similar to Naruto's minus the constant mess and with bit more room and a lot more books. His shelves were filled with books crammed into every available nook and cranny. The Uchiha himself sat behind a large but mostly clear desk. A small stack of paperwork was placed neatly to his left and his long fingers flew across his computer keyboard. "I'll be with you in a moment, Sakura," he said, without taking his dark eyes from the screen. "Please make yourself comfortable."<p>

She glanced at the rather plush chairs in front of his desk but decided against settling in them. In order to do this, she needed to be on her feet, full wits about her.

Another minute passed before his fingers slowed and finally stopped. Then he turned in his chair to face her. "Good afternoon, Sakura. How are you?"

She suppressed the urge to nervously lick her lips. "I'm fine." _Just say it, Sakura. Just say it._ Her nerves fled. He just looked so…confident sitting behind the big CEO's desk in the big CEO's office and she wanted to crawl back to her little secretary's desk and hide behind her little secretary work load. _Just say it…_

He must have noticed her hesitation for he supplied another question; "Did you enjoy the bagels I sent you?"

Sakura swallowed. "That's, uh, actually what I wanted to talk to you about?"

"Oh?" He leaned back in his chair. "They weren't to your liking?"

"Um, yes. Well, no. I didn't eat them, actually." _Spit it out, Sakura!_

He nodded. "You don't like bagels. Forgive me for being presumptuous."

"No!" Sakura turned away and ran a hand through the light, pink waves of her hair.

The Uchiha stood up and began walking around his desk. "Is everything alright, Sakura?"

"Yes! No. Stay over there, Mr. Uchiha! Please." Sakura groaned. Now she was bossing around her CEO in his own office.

He halted in his movement half-way around his desk but raised that slender, black eyebrow. "Why don't you tell me what's bothering you," he said slowly.

She clenched her hands into fists. "Your bagels, Mr. Uchiha! Your bagels are bothering me!"

"The bagels. I see. I truly do apologize. I didn't know you had such a dislike for them."

Sakura stomped her foot. "No! It's not the actual bagels. I don't mind the freaking bagels!"

He stepped all the way around his desk and leaned back onto its surface. "I must admit, Sakura, you have me completely confused. My bagels bothered you but yet you don't actually mind them?"

"_Gahhh!" _Sakura wanted to scream. Why couldn't she just spit it out? "No, Mr. Uchiha, You sent the bagels. I don't want you sending me bagels."

He nodded. "I think I gathered that much. No more bagels."

She took a deep breath. "Thank you."

"Would you prefer toast or even oatmeal instead? I could have Ina – "

"No!"

He blinked.

She took another deep breath. "I am fine. For breakfast. Mr. Uchiha."

"Sakura, you are not eating enough. I can tell just by looking at you."

"Are you calling me _thin, _Mr. Uchiha?" she sputtered.

"Too thin to be healthy."

She looked down at her body. So she was a little on the trim side. Her waist was tiny, but that's because she's short! Her arms were kind of slender but nothing she was concerned about. "I'm not anorexic, sir," she ground out.

"I never said you were."

Her eyes narrowed. "And if I was, it would be none of your business, Mr. Uchiha. You are not my mother nor my dietician."

"May I be a concerned friend?"

"There's nothing to be concerned about!"

"Sakura –"

"I have a fast metabolism!" she yelled.

He folded his arms across his chest.

She glared at him.

"Alright, alright, I apologize. I should have known better than to express concern about a woman's weight."

"Darn straight you should have."

"Okay," he held up his hands in surrender, "we clearly got off on the wrong foot."

"And who's fault do you think that is? First you chase me around my desk and then you send me bagels because you think I have some kind of eating disorder! I can't imagine where things went wrong."

He chuckled. "I apologize. For all of it."

"Good!"

"May I formalize the apology over dinner this evening?"

Sakura threw up her hands and stomped out of his office. Striding past a startled Ino, she stormed down the hall. _Blasted hormonal, stuck-up, pain-in-my-rear-end…_

Two seconds into her mental fuming, she heard behind her; "Was that a no?"

"Yes!" she yelled back.

"It was a yes?"

"No!"

She took the stairs so she wouldn't have to wait for the elevator.


	9. Soya's Invite

Disclaimer: Mumbles something incoherent and highly resentful...

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><p>"Sissy!" Soya flew down the sidewalk with her little backpack bumping against her side from the half-flung position across her shoulder. "Sissy, guess what?"<p>

"You saw a giant turtle," she offered as she reached down to adjust her sister's backpack.

"Nope!"

Sakura pretended to think. "You…got to visit the moon?"

"_No!"_

This time Sakura scrunched up her face in a look of dramatic thought. "Hmm, I got it! You finally saw a pig fly like Momma always says."

Soya rolled her little green eyes. "No, Sissy. Look." She gave Sakura a small white envelope with her name elegantly printed with gold ink on the front.

"What is it, sweetie?"

"Amaya invited me to her birthday party. She's turning seven!"

Sakura drew a blank. "Amaya…?"

"Sissy, I told you 'bout her. My new friend."

Then she remembered. The little girl Soya mentioned yesterday. "Oh, now I remember. Wow. When is her party?"

"Saturday."

"This Saturday?"

Her sister nodded excitedly. "Yup. Can I go?"

"We'll have to ask Momma when we get home okay?"

"'Kay!"

"But for now, look what I brought you." She held out the little bag Ino had placed on her desk that morning.

Green eyes lit up. "A pastry?"

"Not quite. You don't need another one of those."

Soya held out her hand and Sakura gave her the bag. Flipping it open, she looked inside. "Yay! Bagels. For me, Sissy?"

"Of course. With blueberry and cinnamon, just as you like them."

"Thank you." She pulled one out and started munching as they began toward home.

As they walked, Sakura held up the envelope and studied it. Slipping up the fold, she pulled out the clean white paper inside, folded in half. She unfolded and skimmed over the short contents.

_You are cordially invited to my seventh birthday party! Please RSVP as soon as possible online at so I know if you will attend. You can also just tell me. My party starts at noon on Saturday, October 18__th__. My address is as follows:_

_1563 Berry Blvd. 65845_

_Konoha, 25924_

_Hope to see you there!_

_Amaya Uchiha_

Sakura stumbled over her own feet.

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><p>AN: Sorry about the short one but its a busy day! Hugs!


	10. Gifts

_Disclaimer: Don't own_

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><p><em>Wednesday<em>

Sakura hopped off the bus and stared up at the looming Uchiha Technology building. Dark, black glass covered nearly every square foot of its expansive surface. It reminded her of Itachi Uchiha's eyes; which were just as dark, just as black, and reflective as the building's glass.

She groaned and walked into the reception area. How absolutely annoying that such thoughts should prowl about her brain this early in the morning. Waving to the receptionist at the front counter, she took the elevator up to the third floor and made her way to her desk.

But she stopped just a few feet short of her desk.

There was. Another. Brown bag. On her. Desk.

Her brow twitched.

Striding forward the rest of the way, she yanked the bag off her desk and tore open the fold. Banana nut muffins. Sakura paused. Her fingers contracted. She loved banana nut muffins. But no! She would not allow this. She was going to get it through that man's head one way or another. She would not accept gifts.

Putting down the bag, she strode back to the elevators.

A few minutes later, she marched past an objecting Ino and slammed open Mr. Uchiha's office door. "This is not acceptable, sir!" she snapped, but then paused mid-stride. The office was empty.

A flush crept up Sakura's neck. Oh, yeah. Working hours hadn't started yet.

Without making eye-contact with the man's secretary, she wandered back to her floor and sat back in her own seat. Then she eyed the brown bag again. Plucking it up, she pulled out a still-warm muffin. Ah well. There's no point in letting a good thing go to waste.

_Thursday_

Sakura glared at her dozing boss. The man was impossible. And there was absolutely no way she was venturing back up to Mr. Uchiha's kitchen to get him his stupid pick-me-up. Sighing, she left the office and returned several minutes later with three cups of coffee. He would just have to deal with the normal junk that normal people were required to drink.

Setting the mugs on his desk, she shook his shoulder. "Mr. Uzumaki, working hours have started."

He snorted and continued snoring.

Best give him another chance. "_Mr. Uzumaki. Wake! Up!"_

His head rolled to the left and a trail of drool slipped onto a paper.

Her hands clenched into fists. She was _not_ in the mood for this.

Taking a step back, she stepped out of her heels and kicked his chair so hard it yanked right out from underneath him and her boss fell to the floor, banging his head on the desk on his way down.

Ignoring his startled curses, she stormed out of the office and slammed the door behind her. Then she stared at her desk.

There were. White roses. In a vase. _On her desk._

Her first instinct was to find the nearest trash can. But no. They really were quite pretty. And she'd never been given flowers before. It would be a shame to toss them. Sitting down in her chair, she pulled up her email.

_Mr. Uchiha,_

_It is inappropriate to send your employees flowers. Please do not do it again. That counts for muffins as well._

_Best regards,_

_Ms. Haruno_

Shaking her head, she moved the vase so it could be viewed at the best angle on her desk.

Ten minutes later, a new email popped up on her screen.

_Sakura,_

_Flowers? Muffins? It sounds like you have quite the admirer. But can you truly accuse me of sending them if they are not signed for? Absolutely not._

_Have a pleasant day,_

_Itachi_

Sakura rolled her eyes. How did he know they weren't signed for?

Behind her, she heard a dramatic howl; "Sakura! Are you trying to _poison _me? This isn't the right coffee!"

"Deal with it or get your own!" she yelled back.

_Friday_

Another bag of bagels delivered to her desk was the last straw. She looked at the clock. 8:42 am. Standing up, she informed Mr. Uzumaki that she was going on break. A few minutes later, she stepped up to Ino's desk and waited for her to get off the phone.

Another minute later, the woman hung up and flashed Sakura a smile. "Good morning, Sakura. Here to see Itachi?"

At her curt nod, Ino called his office and asked Mr. Uchiha's availability. A second later, she motioned Sakura on.

Sakura jerked open the door without bothering to knock and stepped into his office. This time, Mr. Uchiha was calmly filling out some forms on his desk. Looking up, he gave her a knowing smile. "Good morning, Sakura. How can I help you?"

Sakura strode forward and planted both hands on his desk. "Cut the bull, Mr. Uchiha. I don't appreciate the gifts."

He set down his pen. "Gifts?"

"Yes, the blasted gifts you keep sending me. The muffins. The flowers. And I thought we had an agreement about the freaking bagels."

He nodded. "Yes, I remember you creating quite the fuss over them."

"Yet you sent me more!"

"Why are you so certain they're from me?"

"Because you are the only one in this building with the audacity to be act so forward, Mr. Uchiha."

That eyebrow rose. "Forward."

Sakura pounded the desk with her fist. "Yes, Mr. Uchiha! And stop raising your eyebrows at me. It's beyond aggravating."

Now both eyebrows were raised. "I…apologize?"

"That's what you said before, sir."

Itachi Uchiha leaned back in his chair. "Sakura – "

"Ms. Haruno! You are to address me as _Ms. Haruno_!"

He laughed.

Sakura couldn't believe it. Why was he laughing? "This is not a laughing matter, Mr. Uchiha."

He only laughed harder. It made Sakura wonder if he would get fired for pounding in her CEO's skull.

A while later, his laughter died down to chuckles. "Sakura, you are a lovely woman. I have no doubt you have your share of admirers. Why don't you go hound them about the bagels?"

"Because you sent them to me. No one else."

"So certain."

"I am certain, Mr. Uchiha." She leaned forward. "And allow me to make myself perfectly clear. If you cannot manage to remain on a professional level with me, then I will have no choice but to take more drastic measures."

He smirked. "Are you threatening me?"

She narrowed her eyes. "No. I'm promising you. Honor my wishes or I will find a butcher knife and take care of that little piece of anatomy that is coming between you and professional behavior. Do I make myself clear?"

His smirk actually widened. "You've been hanging around Hinata."

Sakura drew back. The man wasn't even fazed. Schooling her features to remain confident instead of suddenly uncertain, she said. "I'm serious, Mr. Uchiha."

He slid from his seat and stepped around the desk so that he was facing her. And to Sakura's immense annoyance, the man was a good head taller than her so she had to look up.

"I'll make you a deal, Sakura. You go out to dinner with me, just once, and I will stop sending you the gifts."

She slapped him so hard that his face jerked and her palm stung. "Mr. Uchiha, perhaps I was not clear enough. I may need my job but I will not tolerate sexual harassment and you are stepping dangerously close to it."

He stared at her, hard and clearly serious.

It was an expression she was very pleased to see. "I am not one of your bed toys, Itachi Uchiha. And you will not treat me like one. I am a woman to be respected and you _will_ treat me likewise. Is. That. Understood?"

His face was straight and expressionless. His eyes reflective and piercing. Calculative. Then, he nodded, "Understood, Ms. Haruno."

"Thank you." Turning on her heel, she left his office.

Downstairs, she slid into her chair and clenched her hands in her lap to stop their trembling.

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><p>AN: Some people noticed that the first chapter is gone. That's because I decided it was simply too jarring for a first chapter and did not accurately reflect the course of the story. So I will be giving that same information as the story continues just at a different time. I also combined a few chapters to help the flow.


	11. Mother's Dissapointment

Disclaimer: I own a dog. I own a car. I even own some cute jewelry. But nope, I do not own Naruto.

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><p>AN: So very sorry for the long time between updates. I had family in town and that threw everything out the window; homework, fanfiction, hygiene (I'm just kidding!)

Anyway, my life is finally back to normal and I am semi caught up on my homework so I tried to give you a decent length chapter to make up for the long wait. I do apologize for the lack of Itachi-amazingness though. He'll be back monday, promise :) This one is dedicated to **Yddrasyll** for the amazing review.

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><p>Sakura was brushing Soya's pink hair up into twin buns at the dining room table when the front door opened and her mother stepped in. Naomi Haruno slipped off her shoes at the door and sank into the faded cushions of their living room couch. Her head rolled back against the backrest and she closed shadowed eyes. The tension lining her face and the white streaks weaving against the dull coloring of her hair made her appear aged well beyond her forty years.<p>

The sight of her exhausted mother caused a throb inside Sakura's chest. She returned her attention to Soya's hair.

"How's work, Mommy?" her little sister piped up.

"Good, darling," Naomi said without opening her eyes.

"Guess where I'm going, Mommy?"

"Where?"

"To Amaya's house! For her birthday."

"No way," their mother said, a small smile tilting her lips.

"Yup. And sissy is coming with me. Right big sissy?"

Sakura mentally reminded herself that this was all for Soya. All for Soya. "Of course, silly." She secured the second bun with an elastic band and gave the back of Soya's shoulder a firm pat. "All finished. Now go get dressed."

Her sister jumped off the chair and skipped to the room she shared with Sakura.

Once Soya disappeared, Sakura looked to see her mother watching her with half-lidded eyes. "I received a letter from the high school yesterday."

Sakura swallowed. She knew this was coming. It's all for Soya, she reminded herself. It's all for Soya. "Did you?"

"Would you like to tell me where you have been for the last week?"

"Where I'm supposed to be."

Naomi's hand came up to rub her left temple. "That letter said otherwise. You are supposed to be in school, finishing off your senior year."

Sakura let herself down onto the chair Soya vacated. "I dropped out."

"Why?" her mother's voice was emotionless; drained of all energy.

"You need help paying the rent, mom. We received our second eviction notice yesterday."

Naomi's eyes closed again. "I know."

"So I found at job working as a secretary at Uchiha Technology."

"Well tell them you're quitting. I'm not allowing you to drop out of school."

"I already have, momma."

"Only a week ago. That's not too late to be readmitted."

"Momma…"

"I insist, Sakura."

Again, Sakura swallowed. She wiped her damp palms against her jeans. "I refuse."

Her mother's eyes flew open and she sat up. "Excuse me?"

Sakura set her jaw but said nothing.

"Are you _defying_ me?" her mother asked, her entire tone laced with disbelief.

Sakura lifted her chin. "If you insist on me quitting my job, then I insist on my refusal to do so."

Naomi stood up from the couch and moved to stand in front of Sakura. Reaching out, she held on to her daughters hands. "Honey, I know your father's hospital bills have caused us to fall financially behind, but that is my burden to bear. Not yours. The rent will be paid on my next paycheck. It should be enough."

"And what about feeding Soya? Buying her new clothes? You know she's growing out of her current wardrobe, don't you? Do you really think it healthy for her, or any of us, to survive on the little rice and bread the food pantries provide? She needs meat, Momma, and vegetables and fruit. The longer Daddy is in the hospital, the further behind we fall on the bills. One day, and soon, your paycheck won't be able to cover rent and the minimal payments of the hospital bills. Do you really want to take the risk of us being put on the streets? Of Soya being put on the streets?"

Her mother squeezed her hands. "And what about your future, Sakura? By dropping out of school, you are throwing all that away. With your grades, you could get into any college you desire. Don't worry about the bills. Your father will wake up soon and then everything will be alright."

This time it was Sakura's turn to squeeze her eyes shut against the tears threatening from her mother's words. She shook her head. "Momma, it's been over a year since the accident. If he hasn't woken from the coma yet, he's not likely to any time soon."

Naomi released her hands and turned away. "Don't say that."

"We can't pretend it's not a possibility."

She shook her head. "Still. I don't want to hear such talk."

Sakura opened her mouth to say something but Soya chose that moment to burst from their room. "I'm wearing this, sissy. Look, Mommy." She twirled around in black shirt with purple flowers on it and a lavender skirt that reached to her knees. On her feet were little black dress shoes with tiny heels.

Their mother reached down and gave her a hug. "You look beautiful, baby."

"Not as b'utiful as you, Mommy."

"Thank you, honey, but I think you have me beat."

"Nu'uh," Soya said with a scrunched up nose.

"Uh-huh."

"Nu'uh!"

Naomi released her and held up her hands. "Very well, you win. Who can argue with someone as cute as you?"

Soya's grin split her face. "Nobody!"

"Correct," their mother said, tapping her on the nose. "Do you remember that pink bracelet your sister bought you for Christmas? It will look very pretty with your outfit."

Soya's eyes lit up and she ran back into the bedroom.

Sakura laid a hand on her mother's shoulder. "I'm going to work on my GED every afternoon. Then I will start part-time classes at the community college for my associates. I'm sure things will get better within that time period and I will be able to quit my job transfer to a full university."

Naomi turned to her with hardened eyes. "You will have your GED within the next year or you will quit that job and return to school."

Sakura nodded, "Yes, Momma."

Her mother squeezed her upper arm and walked toward her bedroom. "I'm taking a nap. I have my second shift this afternoon so I probably won't be here when you to return home."

"Yes, Momma," Sakura whispered.


	12. Amaya

Disclaimer: Ima shoot someone if I have to repeat this info again

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><p>AN: I lied. No Itachi-awesomeness. It took longer than i expected to get through this part and i ran out of writing time :((

This chap is dedicated to Misscheekiness who provided an amazing review that let me completely inspired. And a special thanks to the rest of my reviewers, but most especially those who have been faithfully reviewing with me from the beginning :)

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><p>They had to walk three miles from the nearest bus stop because clearly people in this neighborhood had no need for public transportation. Sakura looked up at the…the freaking mansion where Amaya's birthday party was being held and shook her head. Three stories high and wide enough to get lost in, the Uchiha home was nothing if not intimidating. And its sprawling lawns that filled the entire block with colorful flower beds, long stretches of luscious green grass and scattered trees did nothing to set her at ease. It was just, too,…obnoxiously big. The little apartment that her mother moved them into after father's accident could surely fit in this place over fifteen times. Absolutely ridiculous.<p>

Sakura snapped up her dropped jaw.

She wasn't envious. Nope. Not a lick of envy in her body.

Rich bastards.

Even as she walked with Soya up the walkway that lined the rather long driveway, several cars passed them. Once they reached the mansion, the children jumped out and the car pulled away or the driver got out as well and handed the car keys to one of the waiting men who moved to park the car.

Soya squeezed her hand. "Sissy, this place is really pretty."

Sakura squeezed back. "Not as pretty as you, sweetie."

"Do you think we could live somewhere like this?"

This time, it was Sakura's heart that squeezed. "If that is what you want, and you work really hard, then one day you could live in a place like this. But you have to work really hard in school. You have to…" she swallowed a sudden lump in her throat, "…to graduate and go to the best university."

Soya beamed into the brightest smile. "Okay, sissy! And when I do that, I will get a big, big home like this one and you and mommy and daddy can live with me!"

Sakura cleared her throat and blinked the burning from her eyes. "Thanks, baby."

"You welcome." Soya skipped the rest of the way to the mansion's rather expansive porch.

Once there, a woman with striking auburn hair and freckles dusting her nose and cheeks greeted them with an exuberant smile. "Good afternoon! Welcome to Amaya's seventh birthday party. My name is Kohana and I will be your hostess," she said, shaking Sakura's hand. Then she bent down to smile at Soya. "So this must be the one my daughter is always telling me about. Soya, is it?"

Her little sister nodded. "How do you know?"

"Well, she said her best friend in the whole world had very, very pretty pink hair." She winked at Soya. "I could only assume she was referring to you."

"Oh," Soya said with a small blush.

Kohana grinned and gestured through the entry doors to the large entrance hall behind her. "If you follow the hall to the very end, you will see some open doors leading to the back lawn and gardens. That's where Amaya's party is being held."

"Thank you, Kohana," Sakura said and led Soya into the entrance hall.

Her neck strained in every which direction as she tried to take in the sheer luxuriousness of the long hall. Massive paintings of landscapes and wild animals hung from the halls. Marble, Romanesque pillars were constructed in such a way as to frame a walkway. Large, crystal chandeliers dangled above them.

Sakura whistled quietly.

Beside her, Soya's green eyes seemed large as golf balls.

Finally they reached the end of the entrance hall and stepped past the French glass doors. Outside looked like a large lawn turned fairground. Kids ran around everywhere. A large portion to their left was roped off for ponies giving rides to a line of children. Beyond that appeared a large, blown up contraption that kids swarmed over, slid down its blown up slides, jumped up and down on. A clown entertained more of the little ones by the table with a five-tiered purple and silver cake. To the right, other tables had been set up with what looked like games and crafts available. Past these, three more tables appeared to host a wide buffet of finger foods and drinks.

"Soya!" a voice squealed. Sakura turned in time to see a little girl with a yellow, floral print sundress run across the lawn and burrow into her sister. Soya was almost knocked off her feet with the momentum of the girl's hug. "You made it!" the girl squealed again. "I'm so happy."

"Me, too," Soya said, grasping the hands of her friend.

The girl whom Sakura assumed to be Amaya tugged on Soya's hand. "Come, you have to see the ponies!"

Before Sakura could utter a word, the two girls took off running. She was left staring at the silky black hair that swayed in Amaya's wake as she ran.

She bit her lip. Her fears had been confirmed. Amaya was the daughter of their hostess, Kohana, and the spitting image of Itachi Uchiha.


	13. Amaya's Resemblence

Disclaimer: MUAHAHAHA! I OWN! I OWN! Oh, wait, just kidding. I just woke up from the most wonderful dream...

Big thank you to **Sayuri** for the in-depth review!

WHOOPS! In the first paragraph of the last chap, that was supposed to say "father's accident" not "father's death" I'm fixing it :) big thanks to** cherryjubilee** who pointed that out!

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><p>Sakura watched the two girls as they rode, Soya in front of Amaya, on the sleek black pony as one of the handlers led the animal by its harness. The girls often reached down to pet the animal's fur and giggle together. She was glad that Soya was enjoying herself but she couldn't stop staring at her little friend, Amaya. At this age, the child was more adorable than pretty but in time Sakura could see an almost unworldly beauty arising out of her. Her tiny dimple on her left cheek will grow more pronounced. The delicate curve of her eyes will prove to be an exotic draw to her face. Her ponytail will in time grow into a thick, luscious mane of silky black hair.<p>

She'd only seen such likeness in one man, her CEO, Itachi Uchiha. She was surely looking at his daughter.

Her grip tightened on the glass of lemonade in her hand. The man flirted like the most eligible bachelor at work all the while having a family at home. A high-class whore, Mr. Uzumaki had called him. Labeled as such by his own friend. His behavior only proved it to be true.

She tapped a finger along the smooth glass. And her little sister was best friends with his daughter. What if they wanted to do a sleep over? Or just visit one another? Not only did she have to see him at work, but he was intruding on her personal life.

"I must say that I am surprised to see you here."

Sakura spun around at the sound of the deep baritone. _Speak of the devil and he shall come_, she muttered in her head. "Good afternoon, Mr. Uchiha."

"Good afternoon." He stepped up beside her and gazed at the girls still laughing on their pony. "Ah, I see now. That must be the Soya who Amaya never ceases to speak of. You two are related, no doubt."

She clenched her glass tighter. She was faintly amazed it hadn't cracked yet. _'…who Amaya never ceases to speak of.'_ If she had any doubts before, she harbored none now. That was much the same words the girl's mother spoke. Turning in such a way that she hoped was not noticeable, she studied the man's features beside her. Long black hair framing his face and tied back at the nape of his neck. Elegantly shaped eyes with those blasted long eyelashes. Even the creamy paleness of their skin was the same. He turned to her and smiled. She slid her eyes shut. Deep dimple on his left cheek.

"Ms. Haruno, are you unwell?"

Sakura held up a hand to silence him. She couldn't bear to hear a single word from those deceptive lips right now. She took a deep breath.

"Ms. Haruno, perhaps you should sit down."

Her eyes flew open. "Perhaps you should tell her," she hissed.

He drew back ever so slightly. "I'm sorry?"

She took a step forward till she was as close to his face as she could get. Well, his face towered a bit over her so she had to get as close to his chest as possible and then stand up on her tiptoes and good grief was the effort killing her attempt to appear intimidating. "Perhaps," she repeated through clenched teeth, "you should tell your wife that you are playing around with women behind her back."

For a moment, the deep depths of his eyes just stared back at her, then _he_ drew himself to his full height. Her tiptoes no longer assisted her. If possible, the dimple on his cheek deepened. Then Mr. Uchiha's eyes narrowed into a glare. "Would you care to repeat that, Ms. Haruno? I'm not sure I heard you correctly."

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><p>AN: *runs away from outraged readers* Don't kill me! I have time limits, people! Always behind in homework, remember? Story of my life, remember? I take up way too much time drooling over Itachi, remember?


	14. Assumptions

Disclaimer: Admitting it is too cruel. Too cruel.

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><p>AN: A big thanks to **misscheekiness** and **Baws** for their corrections!

And sorry but the missed update days. I have absolutely no idea where my brain has been. But though i don't update on Saturdays, i will try to update tomorrow to make up for the last two days :)

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><p>Her finger flew to point in the direction of little Amaya. "Look at that beautiful girl. How could you do that to her? These things never remain secret forever. One day she will find out that her father is whoring himself behind her mother's back and it will devastate her. It will <em>devastate<em> her, Mr. Uchiha."

Itachi Uchiha stared at her through the cool depths of his black eyes.

"Well?" Sakura snapped. "Have you nothing to say for yourself?"

For a long moment he didn't speak, just stared at her through frigid eyes and an expressionless face. And she was so _sick_ of seeing him hide behind that emotionless mask. "You are a cold bastard, Mr. Uchiha. And you disgust me," she spat.

She heard him draw a deep breath through his nose. Then, without a word, he turned and walked away from her.

Sakura spun around to face his retreating back. "Don't you dare walk away from me, Mr. Uchiha."

His feet slowed, then stopped. He slowly turned to face her. If she thought his face cold before, it was positively ice now. "I will not give you the pleasure of goading me, Ms. Haruno."

Sakura felt a rather childish urge to stomp her foot. "I am not goading you. I am confronting you on your complete lack of character."

"My complete lack of character," he stated.

"Yes!"

"Perhaps, Ms. Haruno, you should consider your own character before questioning mine."

"And what can you accuse me of?"

He stepped up to her and bending down, asked in her ear, "How old are you, Sakura Haruno?"

A spike of chill ran up her spine. "I'm eighteen."

"And when, eighteen year-old Sakura Haruno, did you graduate from high school?"

Every blood cell in her body froze. She licked her lips. "L-last year."

The heat of his breath shivered her ear. "You are a terrible liar."

She jerked away and stumbled back a few steps. "How dare you," she hissed.

His face never changed expression. "I'm not the one who lied on my job application, Ms. Haruno. Did you forget that every employee must undergo a background check?"

Blood raced to her cheeks but she stomped down her embarrassment. "What are you saying, Mr. Uchiha?"

"I'm saying, Ms. Haruno, that you, a seventeen year-old high school dropout is in no position to question her CEO's character."

A raging heat twisted her chest and rose up her neck. The fingers holding her glass began to send tremors through the liquid inside. Before she realized what she was doing, her arm swung the entire contents of her drink right in the man's face, drenching his black, button-up shirt with iced lemonade.

A slow, pale hand reached up to wipe the drink out of his eyes. "You just crossed a line, Ms. Haruno."

"The _line_, Mr. Uchiha, was crossed when you mistook me for one of your little job whores," she spat. "Lying on a job application out of financial necessity cannot be compared to violating marriage vows and universal work ethics!"

Itachi Uchiha's black eyes bore into hers. She hated how he still managed to look intimidating with lemonade dripping from his jaw. "Amaya," he said, then paused to draw a very deep, very long breath. "Amaya," he repeated again, "is not my daughter. She is my niece."

Sakura sucked in a shallow breath. A punch to the stomach would have shocked her less.

He walked away with his back straight and his head held tall.

The lemonade glass slipped from Sakura's shocked fingers and dropped onto the grass at her feet. _What have I done?_ Her eyes slid shut. _What have I done?_

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><p><em>hmmm, <em> maybe I should have labeled this a drama...


	15. Sasuke Uchiha

Disclaimer: I do not own. I never will own. I am now going to my room to cry my eyes out.

A/N: WOW! So happy with the reviews :) They really made me laugh. And I think I will be changing this to a drama over a humor because even though that was originally the planned direction (lighthearted fun), these characters have a mind of their own ^_^

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><p>"Stunning."<p>

Sakura looked up from where she stared at the lemonade glass lying at her feet.

Mr. Uzumaki stood next to her with a soft smile on her lips. Reaching down, he picked up the glass and ran his thumb over its edge. "I do believe you rival my wife in bravery."

"Or stupidity," Sakura whispered, blinking back the tears threatening to burn past her eyes.

"May I ask what happened?"

She glanced back to where Soya and Amaya were dismounting from the pony. "Sir, I have done something incredibly foolish."

She saw the blonde shrug out of the corner of his eye. "Depends. Sometimes Itachi deserves to have lemonade thrown in his face."

Sakura's shoulders wilted further. "You don't understand. I accused him of cheating on his wife."

Mr. Uzumaki blinked. "Itachi's not married."

She buried her face in her hands. "I know that now."

"Hey, hey." A strong arm wrapped around her shoulder. "It's going to be just fine. We all make assumptions."

"It's just that," Sakura sniffed, "Amaya looks just like him. His spitting image. What else was I to think?"

A low baritone spoke behind them; "You are not the first to think she belongs to Itachi."

Sakura turned to find herself staring at the newcomer. Creamy pale skin. Tall but slender build. Elegantly shaped eyes. Raven-black hair that was spiked up in the back.

The newcomer held out his hand to her. "I'm Sasuke Uchiha, Amaya's father, and vice-president of Uchiha Tech."

Oh, if she could possibly become more mortified… "I-I'm Sakura Haruno. You are Itachi's brother?" she asked, shaking his hand.

His lips twitched up in a small smirk. "My desire to claim him as a brother depends completely on his current behavior."

Sakura lowered his eyes. "I'm afraid it is my behavior that is lacking today, Mr. Uchiha, not your brother's."

"I highly doubt that." Sasuke snorted. "I know Itachi far too well to believe him innocent of provoking a young woman to the point she throws lemonade in his face."

"In this case, I must defend him."

"Why?"

"Because I was the one who made the incorrect judgment on his character."

Sasuke raised a brow in question.

_Just like his brother, _Sakura noted. "Mr. Uchiha, I accused him of cheating on a wife he does not have. I assumed Amaya was his daughter and therefore –"

"Therefore Kohana is his wife," Sasuke finished for her.

Sakura nodded.

The man studied her a moment. "Let's say he was married. What reason would you have to question his fidelity?"

Sakura flushed, answering without words.

"I see." Sasuke's tone darkened. "Perhaps I should have paid attention to the rumors after all."

Beside her, Mr. Uzumaki cleared his throat. "Now Sasuke, I don't think we should –"

The black-haired man cut him off with a jerked up hand. "Naruto, he promised."

"Yes, but what if he's serious?"

Sasuke blinked, clearly taken aback. "Serious?"

"Yes!" Her boss clapped his hands on both of his companion's shoulders. "Sasuke, think of it. What if he's serious? We haven't had an incident in over a year and all of the sudden Itachi has hormones again?"

Sasuke stared at Naruto, then at Sakura. His jaw tightens. "What is your name?" he asked her.

She swallowed. "Sakura. Sakura Haruno."

He snapped his glare at Naruto. "Your new secretary?"

Mr. Uzumaki nodded.

Sasuke frowned, then turned his gaze back to Sakura. "Have you done anything to encourage Itachi's attentions?"

"Of course not," Sakura said. _How dare he question her work ethics?_

The man's frown deepened. "I highly doubt that, Ms. Haruno. There is not a woman in our employment who does not throw herself at my brother's feet."

Sakura's hands tightened into fists at her side. She was beginning to wish she had two glasses of lemonade. "I beg your pardon, Mr. Uchiha, but your brother is hardly a god that I should worship the ground he walks on."

Sasuke continued to stare at her for several moments before grunting a resentful; "Hn," and striding away.

"Where are you going?" Mr. Uzumaki yelled after him.

"To throw my brother out a window," the man called back without turning from his path toward the house.

"But what if he really is serious this time?"

"She's still an employee, you idiot. _Your _employee, to be specific."

"True," Naruto murmured under his breath. Then he jogged after his departing friend. "Hold up, ya bastard, I want a piece of him too."

Sakura stared after the two men disappearing into the immense house. _What in the world…?_


	16. Cornered

Disclaimer: How much do you think they would sue me for if i totally lied right here?

A/N **No update tomorrow. **This is due to a certain 10 pg paper that is due wednesday and i havent *ahem* started on it.

Special holler to **HAPPY ** whose review (and PM) made me laugh. Hysterically.

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><p>They stared at him as he strode toward the main house, no doubt wondering why his shirt was damp. That is, if they hadn't already seen the little minx's unique way of disposing of her lemonade.<p>

His jaw tightened.

The woman was a little devil in angelic skin. The way those green eyes flashed when he said something – usually purposefully – to spark her ire; it was infuriating yet completely…alluring. Surely he couldn't be held accountable for his behavior if it was hers that drew him. He was a moth captured by flame and it was as refreshing as it was hazardous to his person.

Entering the house through the back, he headed for the stairs only to be intercepted by Mikoto Uchiha on her way down. Mikoto paused in mid-step, and then withdrew her foot from its descent. Reaching up, she tucked a strand of long black hair behind her ear. "Itachi."

_Let it go, Mother. Just let it go. _"Yes, Mother?

She gestured at his torso. "May I ask?"

"No you may not, Mother."

"I will find out anyway."

He gave a curt nod. "I'm sure you will."

"Then will you…"

"No, Ma'am."

A small smile tilted her lips and she continued past him. "As you wish."

He raced up the stairs and paused only when he was safely behind the closed door to his room. Taking a deep breath, he unbuttoned his drenched shirt and shrugged it off.

Hazardous to his health indeed. Let his mother learn about his attraction to an employee and he'd likely be _dead._

Shaking his head, he went to his private bathroom to shower and shampoo.

Trust Sakura Haruno to ruin his pride and his hair all in one day.

Ten minutes later, he stepped out of the bathroom with one towel wrapped around his waist and drying his hair with another.

"You, brother, have a great deal of explaining to do."

Itachi's head jerked up.

His little brother leaned against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest while Naruto sat on his bed, grinning from ear to ear.

Itachi closed his eyes and resumed drying the long ends of his hair. "Please leave. I'm dressing, as you can clearly see." His towel paused and he lifted a batch of hair to his scrutinizing eyes. Was that a split end?

"Care to explain the lemonade incident?" Sasuke demanded.

Sighing, Itachi dropped the hair and resumed drying. He would need to make an appointment for a trim tomorrow. "I don't need to explain anything, little brother."

"As a matter of fact, Itachi," Naruto harped in, "you do. You made a promise."

He frowned at the blonde sitting far too comfortably on his bed. "Naruto, get off my bed."

"I'm not going anywhere until you explain why you broke your promise."

"I did no such thing."

"Bull," Sasuke said, pushing off the wall and plopping down beside his best friend. "Not only did you break your promise but you did so for Sakura Haruno of all people. Don't you think she has enough on her plate without worrying about her CEO drooling over her?"

Itachi's fingers itched to yank both men off his bed by the tips of their ears. "I'm well aware of her situation. I approved her employment, after all. And I do not drool." He watched with narrowing eyes as Sasuke reached down and began running an idle finger along his bedspread. "Are your hands clean?"

Sasuke looked up with an innocent expression. "Well now, I don't recall if I washed them before or after I changed Kisho's diaper an hour ago."

Itachi blanched at the thought of Sasuke changing his son's diaper and then touching his bed. Absolutely disgusting. He will have to change the bed linen.

"So are you going to talk or not?" Sasuke pressed.

"Not," he replied, walking into his closet and pulling out another set of clothes.

"We're not leaving your room until you do," Naruto threatened. "In fact, we might just take a nap in your warm, comfy bed."

Itachi mentally shuddered but allowed no reaction to cross his face. Striding past the two twerps, he re-entered his bathroom so he could change and slammed the door behind him.

A second later as he was securing a belt on his pants, he heard Naruto yell, "Make that a nap in the nude!"

Itachi all but flew out the bathroom. "What do you want to know?" he growled.

Sasuke grinned, "Everything."


	17. Connections

Disclaimer: My ego cannot handle admitting it again.

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><p>AN: Hugs to **awesomenaruto** who's review made me happy!

Btw, I have decided to pretend Sasuke and Itachi are not the traditional 7-8 yrs apart. In this fic, Sasuke is only 3 yrs younger than Itachi. And apologies for the lack of update yesterday, hehe, i kinda forgot I was even writing this fic :P

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><p>Itachi stared at the two men invading his room. "You are both viciously nosy."<p>

Sasuke waved that away. "Family trait."

Itachi scowled. "I think not."

"Anyway," Naruto butted in, "why do you say you didn't break your promise when you so clearly did?"

Pulling on his shirt, Itachi said, "The promise was I would not have sexual relations with a woman unless I intended to marry her. I have not broken my promise."

"Clearly you have, brother," Sasuke said. "When I asked Haruno about you, she blushed as clear evidence of the truth."

Itachi resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The idiocy of his brother often proved astounding. He would have to be plain. "Sakura Haruno is seventeen years old. Of course she blushed. That doesn't mean I have found my way into her pants."

Naruto crossed his arms. "Itachi, you're only 26 years old yourself. Don't act like you have all your hormones in check, either."

Finishing with the buttons on his shirt, he moved to grab his shoes from by the door. "So speaks the newlywed."

"Itachi," Sasuke said, "we are only concerned. I don't want Sakura to experience what Kohana and I did. A child at 16, unmarried, terrified out of our shoes. Amaya is our blessing but we were too young to handle the consequences of sleeping around."

"Besides," Naruto butted in, _again,_ "don't you think that you being 26, her being 17…sounds suspiciously like robbing the cradle?"

Itachi wanted to throw up his arms and stomp out of his room like the childish moron they accused him of being. "Naruto." He glared at his blonde friend. "Sasuke." He turned his eyes to his little brother. "As you have clearly seen, Ms. Haruno is more than capable of standing up for herself. She has rebuked me, slapped me, and thrown lemonade in my face. Believe me when I say her honor is in no danger."

Both men stared at him, awestruck before Sasuke's lips quirked and Naruto broke out in a fit of laughter so hard he fell back on Itachi's bed, clenching his stomach. "S-she slapped_," _howls of laughter, "_slapped_ the great Itachi Uchiha." More peals of laughter.

Itachi stared at the hysterical maniac. His bed was officially violated. Perhaps he should order new mattresses and a bedframe instead of just changing the linen. Disgusted, he walked back to the bathroom to retrieve a band to pull back his hair with.

When he returned to the bedroom, Naruto had calmed his ridiculous laughter into quiet chuckles. Sasuke, however, seemed to have his amusement under control. He watched his brother with curious eyes. "Itachi, I must say that I am surprised. The girl has repeatedly rejected you and yet you still show interest? That's unlike you."

Itachi sniffed. "It is unlike me to be rejected in the first place."

Naruto, who had managed to return to sanity and sat back up, asked, "Then why keep chasing her when you have so many at your beck and call? Plenty of which are just as beautiful, or more so."

Leaning against the polished oak desk to the left of his bed, Itachi said, "Tell me, Naruto, why did you marry Hinata?"

Blue eyes blinked as the blonde thought over his question. "I don't see how that applies."

"Indulge me."

"Well," Naruto reached up to scratch the back of his head, "because she's different. She's sweet. And she's strong; fierce even. She's the most compassionate person I know. I don't really deserve her, to be honest."

"Do you think she's beautiful?"

"Of course!"

"And if she kept her beauty but lacked all those other attributes, would you still have married her?"

Naruto seemed taken aback for a moment. "No," he said slowly, "I don't think so."

Itachi nodded. "A year ago, Sakura's mother and father were in a severe car crash with a drunk driver. Her mother walked away with minor bruises but her father, who was on the side of the collision, received brain trauma and has been in a coma ever since. They have no medical insurance. Their hospital bills total over $50,000. Sakura, a straight-A student, who could get into any college she desired, dropped out four months before graduating high school because her mother could no longer afford to pay their bills on her own."

His eyes bore into Naruto's. "In answer to your question, I'm not interested in Sakura Haruno because she's cute. I'm interested because I respect her more than any woman I have ever met."

Sasuke's brow furrowed. "How do you know all this?"

Itachi looked away. A sudden pressure in his chest made him not want to speak. "Because our family has been tracking hers ever since the accident. Helping in any way that Sakura's mother allows us to."

"What? But why?"

"Because father was the drunk driver responsible for the crash."


	18. Answers and Questions

Disclaimer: What do you think?

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><p>AN: You guys blew me away with the reviews! We're over 200! And there are new reviewers too :) Thanks everybody! And if you haven't reviewed yet, go ahead and click that button on the bottom, you don't even have to log in. It'll make me happy and a happy writer is a motivated writer and a motivated author is, well, kinda important if you all want frequent updates, right?

There's been questions about age that I keep forgetting to answer so allow me to clear it up:

Sakura: 17

Itachi: 26

Sasuke/Naruto: about 23

Soya: 6

Amaya: 7

I don't think the rest matter

NOW! On with the story.

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><p>Naruto paled but the blood completely drained from Sasuke's face. "<em>What<em>?" he whispered hoarsely.

"Father –"

His little brother jumped off the bed and faced the window, running a hand through his hair. "Why wasn't I told this?"

"Sasuke –"

"I _thought_ she was a charity case. She's underage but her family needs the money. So we give her a job. She's a hard worker. We keep her on. You get all lusty. I throw you out a window. When the hell did Father come into the picture?"

"Little brother –"

He spun around to face Itachi. "Don't you 'little brother' me, Itachi. I thought he was done drinking!"

"He is now," Itachi muttered.

"Now? _Now?_ He was supposed to be done five years ago. Now he's nearly killed a man. And we give that man's daughter a job as our way of saying sorry? Why haven't we paid their hospital bills? Why haven't we bought them a new house, new car, sent the girls to private school, paid for Sakura's college? Why aren't we taking care of them?"

"We are doing the best we can."

"A job? With our resources? A _job_ is the best we can?" Sasuke strode toward the door. "This is bullshit."

"Where are you going?" Itachi asked, blocking his path.

"Get out of my way," his brother snarled.

"Not until you tell me where you are going."

"I'm going to speak to Sakura," Sasuke snapped. "The least we can do is to pay their hospital bills."

"Sakura doesn't know and her mother doesn't want any money."

Sasuke drew back. "What?"

Itachi pinched the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. "Mrs. Haruno doesn't want our aide. She doesn't want our money. She doesn't want to see an Uchiha face for the rest of her days. And who can blame her? Her husband is in a coma and its Father's fault. You can't fix that by shoving a little money her way and call yourself atoned. Mrs. Haruno is making sure Father knows that."

Sasuke was silent for a while. Then he said, "Still. I should have been told."

Itachi sighed and sank into the leather chair in front of his desk. He suddenly felt far older than his years. "Why, little brother? So you can hate him more than you already do? He didn't want you to know. And that was his decision to make, not mine."

Sasuke's dark eyes dimmed to a blackness Itachi had never seen on him before. "Well. Father is just full of wise decisions. I can't imagine why I ever hated him." Stomping out the room, Sasuke slammed the door behind him.

Itachi winced at the sound. _My hair will be grey by the time I turn thirty,_ he mused resentfully to himself.

"Itachi?"

"Yes, Naruto."

"There are no words to describe how screwed up your family is."

Leaning back in the chair, he ran both hands down his face. "I know, Naruto."

A long pause, followed by; "I think I better check up on Sasuke before he turns homicidal."

"That might be wise," he agreed.


	19. Reconciling

Disclaimer: I plan to take over the world! And when I do, I shall own Naruto! But for now, *sigh* I do not.

This one's for you, **planless , **but don't worry, the spats are far from over ^_^

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><p>Sakura sat on one of the yard lounge chairs, sipping on a cup of ice water. Near the dessert table, Amaya introduced Soya to the little baby cradled in<p>

Kohana's arms. Sakura watched as Soya made funny faces at the infant and was rewarded with squeals of delight.

"Charming birthday party, isn't it?"

Sakura looked to her left in time to see a dark haired woman settle in the lounge chair next to her. "Hinata!" she greeted her. "How are you?"

Hinata smiled. "Surprised, actually. I didn't expect to see my husband's secretary at my goddaughter's birthday party."

"Goddaughter?"

"Yes, Naruto and I are Amaya's godparents."

"Oh. I see." Sakura pointed to where Soya was abandoning Amaya's little brother in favor of cake. "See the little girl Amaya is playing with? The one with the pink hair? That is Soya, my little sister. They became friends at school."

Hinata peered at the girl in the distance. Her smile deepened. "Ah. The resemblance is uncanny. I'm surprised I didn't notice it before."

"We both take after our mother."

"Well," Hinata said, "between you and me, I hope the same for my little one."

"You have a child?"

The black-haired woman laid a hand on her stomach. "In the works."

"Oh my God!" Sakura squealed. "Congratulations. How far along are you?"

"Almost two months. I just found out a week ago."

"Does Mr. Uzumaki know?"

"He will soon," Hinata winked. "I'm just waiting for the opportune time to tell him."

"What about names? Have you thought of any yet?"

"Mika for a girl and Sachio for a boy. I've loved those names ever since I was a little girl. Of course, Naruto's opinions will be taken into consideration. Slightly."

Sakura giggled.

"Anyway," Hinata continued, "enough about me. How about you?"

"Not well," she admitted. Her shoulders slumped. "I will be putting in my resignation notice on Monday."

Hinata gasped. "But why? You're doing so well. Naruto has nothing but good things to say about you."

Taking a long sip of her water, Sakura's gaze returned to where Amaya and Soya had abandoned the baby for a game of tag with the other children at the party. "I would rather quit before Mr. Uchiha has the chance to fire me."

"Itachi or Sasuke?"

"Itachi."

"But why would Itachi want to fire you?"

Sakura stared down at the chunks of ice in her cup. "There are so many instances of blatant disrespect. He needs only choose one."

"I'm not going to fire you, Ms. Haruno," a silky voice interjected.

Head jerking up, Sakura met the rich black eyes of Itachi Uchiha. He had changed into a dark blue, button up shirt and his long, tied-back hair appeared damp, as though he'd just jumped out the shower. _He probably did,_ she thought to herself.

Immediately, Hinata excused herself and made her way toward Kohana.

Sakura stood to her feet. "Mr. Uchiha, I truly apologize for the lemonade. I should never have lost my temper like that."

Itachi tilted his head in acceptance. "I, too, must apologize. I knew that you misinterpreted Amaya's appearance and I didn't correct you before you had the chance to grow angrier. That was poor judgment on my end."

Fingers fiddling with the glass in her hand, she said, "It was my assumptions that angered you in the first place. I have no right to judge your character and I apologize for that as well."

He tilted his head to the right just enough for several strands of black hair to fall into his eyes. "I cannot blame you for that. If I did have a wife, you would have been the woman I was cheating on her with. It is understandable that you grow alarmed."

She rubbed some of the condensation off the rim of her glass with her thumb. "Forgive me for asking, but if…" she hesitated; "if you were married, would you have…uh…" she couldn't say it.

A small grin spreads across his handsome face. "Would I have still pursued you?"

She nodded.

"Ms. Haruno," he reached out and tucked a loose strand of pink hair behind her ear, "if I married a woman with half your beauty and personality, my eyes would never wander elsewhere."

Heat singed up her cheeks.

He tilted his head at her. "Enjoy the party, Ms. Haruno."

Again he walked off, leaving her gaping in his wake.


	20. Another Woman

Disclaimer: My plan to take over the world has failed. I still do not own Naruto

A big THANK YOU for the reviews! I couldn't pick just one. They all made me grin.

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><p>Itachi perused the reports on his desk but frowned when he realized there were only seven of them when there should be eight. His dark eyes slid to the department names and he began mentally ticking them off: research, customer relations, financial, aha. He rolled his eyes when he realized which report was missing. Turning his chair to the computer, he pulled up his email.<p>

_Naruto,_

_The midmonth report for marketing is past due. Again. You have one hour to have it on my desk or expect late shifts for the rest of the week. You will go home when I do._

_Enjoy your day_

_Itachi_

A while after he clicked 'send,' the phone rang on his desk. Itachi pushed a button and sat back in his leather chair. "Yes, Ino?"

"Ms. Rina asks to speak with you."

He barely withheld a groan. What did the woman want now? "Please take a message. I'm busy."

There was a long pause, and then; "She insists, sir."

The urge to bang his head on the desk was strong but he resisted. Barely. "Inquire about the purpose of her visit."

Another pause. "She says that's confidential."

Itachi growled under his throat. "Let her in."

A tall woman with a willowy figure, deeply tanned skin, spicy red lipstick and long black hair framing her face walked into his office. The click-clack of her heels along his polished floor made him want to wince. Lidded blue eyes peered at him through a shield of heavy eyelashes. "Hello, Itachi," she purred.

"Rina," he replied coolly.

Sliding into the seat across his desk, she leaned forward and tucked her hand demurely under her chin.

Itachi mentally sighed. He could have survived the day without such a view of her surgery-enhanced cleavage. "What do you want, Rina?"

"You haven't been returning my calls, 'tachi," she said with a little smile.

"I'm aware of that," he said flatly.

"Why?"

_Because you disgust me. _"I don't have the time to talk to you." He opened one of the reports and pretended to peruse it. Anything was better than looking at the simpering heiress and the breasts threatening to pop out of her blouse. _Did the woman have any decency?_

"But I want to speak to you."

_Dear Lord…_ "Well I apologize for neglecting your wants," he stated, flipping a page of the report.

"You are ignoring me."

"Congratulations on your powers of observation. They are extraordinary."

Suddenly a perfectly manicured hand pressed down on his report, obstructing his view. He looked up to glare at the woman only to find her no longer seated in front of him. His eyes narrowed. Then a trail of silky black hair fell against his face, tickling his cheek. He felt another hand travel across his shoulders and down his chest. "I don't like being ignored, Itachi," she breathed in his ear.

X

X

X

Sakura hummed a cheerful tune as she sat down at her desk on Monday. It was a beautiful day. Mr. Uzumaki was in his office working for once, and not dozing. She still had her job despite her deplorable behavior at the birthday party. And best of all, there were no gifts on her desk to greet her. _Although, _she thought to herself, _a bagel sounds pretty good right now._

Starting up her computer, she was browsing through her email when she heard a distinct curse and her boss called her into his office.

"Yes, Mr. Uzumaki?" she asked at the door.

Naruto looked up from the pile of paperwork sprawled all across his desk. Scrambling from his seat, he snatched a manila folder from his desk and shoved it into her hands. His blue eyes were wide with panic. "Listen to me, Sakura. I need you to save my life. I cannot work Itachi's schedule. The man has no life. I will die. If I work his hours, Hinata will castrate me, throw me out the bedroom, and stab me to death."

She blinked. "Sir, I don't understa-"

"Nevermind. I need you to run this up to the CEO's office and personally deliver it to his desk. Don't let anything stand in your way." Releasing the envelope, he grabbed her forearms and lightly shook her. "Do you understand? It's…" he glanced at the clock on the wall, "8:55. You have five minutes to do this. _Five minutes._ Nothing stands in your way. Okay?"

"I…uh…"

"Go, Sakura!"

She ran out the office, weaved her way through department employees and dashed for the elevators. By the time she arrived in front of Ino's desk, she was fair gasping for air. "Need to deliver – " she paused for a quick breath and held up the manila folder, "this to him."

Ino nodded slowly. "Uh, alright. I'll take that for you and give it to him as soon as he is available."

Sakura's eyes leapt to the clock behind her. 8:59. "Is he in there?"

"Yes, but –"

Sakura darted past the desk and barged into her CEO's office.

The sight that greeted her caused her to skid to a halt so fast she nearly lost her balance.

A black-haired woman looked up from where she'd been nuzzling Itachi Uchiha's throat. "And just who are you?"


	21. Held Back

Disclaimer: I have decided to buy the rights to Naruto. All I need is about $5,000 from each of my readers and we should be good to go. Any volunteers? ;P

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><p>First and foremost, my humblest apologies to <strong>anon. <strong>I really wanted to update as requested, just cause you asked so nicely, but Wednesday was a busy day. My apologies actually, truly apply to yesterday cause yesterday I was just too lazy. Forgive me?

A thank you to **Albatross Aoba, **for the valid critique. Albatross pointed out that it is a bit unrealistic for Amaya to be in a public school with Soya when her parents can afford private school. I actually realized this two chaps ago but by then, well, it wasn't really worth fixing. So, let's just pretend, for the sake of nonprofit, FREE, entertainment, that this problem does not exist. 'Kay! ^_^

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><p>Itachi stiffened at the movement of her hands. "Rina, I'm warning you. Don't touch me."<p>

Her breath ghosted against his neck. "Itachi, Itachi, why do you resist the inevitable? It is only a matter of time before you are mine and," her hand drifted down toward his stomach, "I am yours."

He'd never before hit a woman but if there ever was a time when he was tempted –

The door to his office swung open, snapping him out of his darker thoughts. To his immediate dismay, none other than Sakura Haruno barged in before stumbling to a stop. Her eyes widened.

Rina pulled away from his neck. "And just who are you?"

Sakura's lovely features paled.

Itachi groaned. Scratch that first thought. If there was ever a time when he wanted to shoot himself, now was definitely it. Shoving back against Rina so hard she stumbled away, he stood to his feet. "She's my employee," he growled at her.

Sakura's eyes flickered between the two before her face went completely blank. Take several, deliberate steps forward she set a manila folder on his desk. When she spoke, her voice was soft and emotionless. "Mr. Uzumaki requested that I deliver that to you. He said not to let anything stand in my way." Her eyes darted to the door where Ino had appeared, looking at a complete loss. "And so I didn't."

Taking a step back, she turned and disappeared past Ino, who quietly shut the door after her.

Itachi moved to follow when a hand on his forearm stopped him.

"Let her go," Rina said. "She's of little importance, is she not?"

His hands clenched into fists so hard his arms trembled. "That's where you are wrong." He jerked his arm away.

He moved to step past her but she stepped in his way. Her blue eyes narrowed. "Then who is she, Itachi?"

"My employee," he all but snarled at her.

"_Just_ an employee?"

"Yes."

"And this employee's opinion of you is so important that you would act this distressed when she sees you with a woman? Tell me the truth."

"Contrary to what you believe, I'm not obligated to tell you anything, Rina. She is an employee and I would prefer that my employees not harbor incorrect assumptions of me. Now move."

She stepped forward so that she was inches from his torso. A finger came up to run along his jaw. "Call it woman's intuition," she murmured, "but something about _your_ reaction to _her_ reaction leads me to believe there is something going on between the two of you."

He swatted her hand away. "And if there was? What is that to you?"

Her hand returned as quickly as he smacked it away. This time her palm cupped his cheek. She took another step forward and her breasts pressed against his chest. "You are my fiancé. I don't _like_ the thought of you playing around with another woman. And why would you," he felt her other hand brush up his back, "when you have me?"

"We are not engaged, Rina," he hissed.

She gave a little roll of the eyes. "We are all but."

"That 'but' makes all the difference." He shoved her away and strode for the door. "I want you out of my office by the time I return."

Outside, he found Ino with her nose practically buried in her filing drawer. "Where did she go?" he demanded.

Her head jerked up so fast, her blonde hair stuck out in every which direction. "I, um, uh…who?"

"Ms. Haruno. Where did she go?"

She licked her lips. "Ms. Haruno?"

"Yes!"

A single finger pointed toward the elevators down the hall. "That way?"

Itachi grit his teeth. _Why did I even bother asking?_ Walking as fast as he could while maintaining dignity, he arrived at the elevators and pressed the button for Naruto's floor.

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><p>Don't kill me. I will be making every effort to update tomorrow since I try to provide at least four updates a week.<p> 


	22. Sakura's Decision

**Disclaimer:** *sobs hysterically* Nobody...*hiccups* wants to donate *hiccups some more* $5,000 (or more if you feel so gracious...) to my cause of owning Naruto? *Bursts into a new set of tears and goes running for the chocolate drawer*

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><p>AN: AHA!** Cherryjubilee **came to my rescue with the following point:_ "__Btw, there are affluent parents who choose public school over private school so their kids dont get a swelled head. Competition can also be more intense in goodpublic schools since these kids dont have silver spoons._" Yay! See? I was unconsciously thinking the same thing...*wink*

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><p>When he arrived in front of Naruto's office, the secretary desk was empty. Itachi scowled and knocked on the office door before letting himself in.<p>

The blonde looked up from his computer. "I-Itachi! You got the report?" His eyes flicked to the clock on the wall. "I hope."

"Where is your secretary?"

Naruto's head plopped down onto his desk. "You didn't get the report," he moaned.

Feeling his patience prepare to snap, Itachi's fingers flexed. "I got the damn report. Where is Ms. Haruno?"

The marketing director's eyes peaked up. "You got the report? Oh thank God. I really don't know how you work those hours, Itachi. Seriously. We need to find you a hobby, and paperwork definitely, definitely does not count."

His patience snapped. "Naruto! Focus. Ms. Haruno. Where is she?"

A suspicious gleam entered the blonde's eyes. "Why do you want to know?" he asked slowly.

"Because, I –" He stopped himself. "Why do you want to know why I – " He stopped himself again. Fists clenched, Itachi took a long, stable breath. "You don't know where she is."

Naruto raised a brow. "No idea."

An image passed through Itachi's mind in which his hands slid around the blonde's throat and he shook so hard that Naruto's head wobbled back and forth, threatening to fall off.

Naruto's voice snapped him out of his fantasy. "You may wait for her if you like." He gestured to the small brown couch off to his left.

Itachi grunted and moved to sit down.

"But," Naruto continued. Itachi eyed him with a disdainful stare. "You may only wait if you tell me what you want with my secretary."

The Uchiha's stare tightened into a dark glare.

The blonde held his own, meeting glare for glare.

Itachi took another long, steadying, loud breath.

Naruto threw his hands up. "Fine, ya arrogant prick. Sit down already. Keep your snobby mouth shut. I don't care. I'm sure she just went to run some copies or something."

Itachi sat down. Hard. And he would not cross his arms like a sulking child.

X

X

X

Sakura sat on the toilet seat in the bathroom cubicle, legs crossed, elbow resting on knee, chin resting on arm, staring at the swinging door in front of her. He was a bastard. There were no other words to describe him. What was his problem? He was her CEO, for heaven sake. She shouldn't even need to be thinking about this.

So why was she?

Why the hell was she?

First he acts like she's the first scrap of meat his starving eyes have seen for a decade. Then he gets bent out of shape when she accuses him of being unfaithful. And then, when she apologizes, he spouts what she now knew to be romantic _bull crap_. Finally, this. The evidence that he really was everything she thought he was before she began to question his current state of being a total, complete, jack donkey.

She blew a pink lock of hair out of her face and sighed miserably.

Freaking jerk.

He obviously had beautiful, no _gorgeous_ women throwing themselves at his feet. And why wouldn't he? Long, silky black hair. Eyes so dark and piercing they almost seemed exotic. Firm, muscled chest.

Sakura buried her face in her hands and groaned. Handsome with an ego the size of Manhattan. What did he want with her when he had other women like that readily available? The woman in his office was breathtaking in her beauty. Her figure was clearly…well, _there. _Mr. Uchiha seemed content enough to be her rubbing mat.

So what the fuuu-_gah!_

Jerk.

_Jerk._

_JERK._

Well. Enough was enough. She was not pouting over him. She hated him. He disgusted her. He could die a slow, rotten death for all she cared.

Sakura stood to her feet, pulled back her shoulders, lifted her chin and swung open the cubicle door. Marching past a young woman applying mascara, she left the bathroom.

Once back at her desk, she sat down and began reviewing Mr. Uzumaki's schedule on the computer. She would simply pretend the man no longer existed. She would not go to his floor and he should have no reason to come to hers. Itachi Uchiha was a puzzling headache she refused to deal with any more.

Snatching up some papers from her desk, she began looking through the department meeting reports to see if there was anything she needed to schedule for her boss.

She was so engrossed in her task that she wasn't prepared for the smooth, deep voice that spoke behind her; "Ms. Haruno, may I take a moment to speak with you?"

Sakura jumped half-way out of her skin and her paperwork flew everywhere. Scrambling out of her chair, she swung around to face the intruder. When she saw none other than Itachi Uchiha, she wanted to scream, pull her hair, and stomp up and down.

When her gaze slid from the handsome prick to all the paperwork sprawled across the floor, she did all the above.

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><p>x<p>

x

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A/N #2: Soooo, **skyrere** was kind enough to share a valid pet peeve about how idiot men, like my beloved Itachi, obviously hate women clinging all over them but allow it anyway. BAD Itachi! Do you secretly _like it?_

Well, we all have our little erks about what happens in the world of fiction so I thought it would be mega interesting and possibly beneficial to many if you were to share what _your_ fanfiction pet peeve is (or just fiction/writing peeve) Will ya do that? huh? puh-weeze? pretty pretty please? *pulls out the puppy dog face* I promise not to cry myself to sleep if your pet peeve even applies to my fic.

I will start. I hate character bashing. grrhhhh. If you hate the character that bad, leave them out of your story. And i get super annoyed when one character treats another totally awful and two chapters later they have fallen in love. And i think we've _all_ stumbled across the ones where non-con leads to romance. No offence, but i just can't stomach that. Then there's the weak heroine. The one who fauns over the man and must be saved from her own stupidity every other chapter and couldn't wipe her own butt to save her life... And finally! Two-dimensional characters. Flat characters. Boring characters. Characters that are just _there_. They have no history, no quirks, no flaws, no drive, nothing nada zip. ugh.

How about you?


	23. Angry Words

Disclaimer: I still don't own Naruto. Nobody donated the $5,000 despite regular begging. I blame you people, not me *wink*

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><p>AN: Yes! It is so! An update! VERY sorry about another solid wait. I burned myself out this past month and really had to take a break from everything that wasn't a life requirement :) But i am back now. Have every intention of updating tomorrow. Enjoy! Oh! and thanks so much for the last reviews. It was a blast reading about all the petpeeves!

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><p>When she was done screaming, pulling her hair out of her scalp, and stomping her foot, Sakura took a heavy breath and glared at her CEO. "What. Do. You. Want? Sir."<p>

Mr. Uchiha blinked, clearly taken off guard by her rather emotional display.

Sakura threw her hands up in the air. "Fine!" she snapped, "Don't answer. I don't care. You're the big, bad CEO, after all. Do what you want. Stand there for absolutely no reason." Slipping down onto her knees, she began snatching up her scattered paperwork. "Don't know why I bothered to ask in the first place. Most people have reasons for the things they do. People usually have a reason behind sneaking up on people and asking to speak to them. But no. Not you, Itachi Uchiha." She stretched her hand to yank up the papers that landed under the desk. "_You_, Mr. Uchiha, are beyond the courtesy expected of everyone else. Matter of fact, I don't know why I'm even speaking to you. I would expect – "

She paused as the object of her tirade knelt down beside her and quietly began helping her gather papers; she slapped the ones he offered her onto her now messy pile, "…thank you," she muttered under her breath, and then continued; "But don't think assisting me is in any way going to improve my now lowered opinion of you. I don't care if you are my boss' boss. You are a womanizing jerk. Do you understand me?" she emphasized her words by snatching the rest of the papers out of his hand and standing to her feet. "You are a womanizing jerk who thought he could play me. But understand me. You don't have me fooled." Sakura smacked the pile of papers down onto her desk. "_I am not fooled by you_, Itachi Uchiha."

Plopping down into her chair, Sakura began shuffling through her papers, trying her best to ignore the quiet presence standing beside her desk.

A hand touched her shoulder.

She spun around in her seat and smacked it away. "_Do not_ touch me, Mr. Uchiha."

Her CEO stepped back. His black eyes filled with an uncertainty that did not match his emotionless expression. "Sakura –"

"_Ms. Haruno._"

"Ms. Haruno," he corrected, "may I please just speak with you?"

Sakura spun back around to continue leafing through her work. "Speak. I'm not going anywhere."

"I would prefer to speak in a more private setting."

She looked up to study him with narrowed eyes. "Is it business related?"

He sighed. "You know it isn't."

She returned to her work. "Then you know my answer."

"Please, Ms. Haruno."

Sakura slammed a palm down on the desk's surface. "If there isn't anything business related that you need from me, I must ask that you allow me to return to my work, sir. I have a great deal of it to do." She lied. She only had this pile to sort and then she planned on a game of solitaire to ease her frazzled brain.

He tilted his head so that the black hair framing his face fell into his eyes. "And forgive me for interrupting that. I know you to be a hard worker."

"You don't _know_ anything about me," she snarled.

His dark eyes slid shut and he took a deep breath. Then he reopened his eyes. "Naruto reports that you are a hard worker. It is enough for me to take his word for it."

She huffed but let it go.

"Please listen, Ms. Haruno. I cannot express how sorry I am that you had to walk in on such a scene in my office. I endeavor to keep a professional environment and that was anything but."

Sakura barked a laugh while scribbling a nonsense note on one of the papers. "Mr. Uchiha, it's a little too late for you to be talking about a professional environment. In professional environments, CEOs don't flirt with employed secretaries. You have done that and more."

A long pause followed her words, then; "And I apologize for that as well. You are right."

"_Please_, sir, don't apologize. We both know you don't mean it. You would do it all over again in a heartbeat."

Another pause. "You're right."

"I know."

He wasn't finished. "But that's only because I am too captivated by you to pretend you don't hold my attention."

Sakura slammed down her pen. _Enough. Enough!_ Standing to her feet, she said, "Excuse me, Mr. Uchiha. The crap you're feeding me has upset my stomach. I need to go to the ladies room to throw up."

She was two steps from her desk when he grabbed her elbow. "Please, Ms. Haruno. Listen to me."

"No."

"I meant what I said."

Sakura yanked on her arm but his hold was firm. "Let me go, Mr. Uchiha."

"Please, just listen to what I have to say."

She yanked harder. "I _have_. Hence the reason for my nausea."

"I just want to explain."

"I wouldn't recommend that. Your mouth has a tendency to spout words that only tick me off."

His hand tightened. "There is nothing going on between that woman and I."

Her laugh was hollow and more bitter than ginger root. "Somehow I doubt that." His mouth opened to speak but she cut him off. "But you know what? It doesn't matter. Who cares what the CEO does in his office. That's your business. I shouldn't have barged in no matter what Mr. Uzumaki told me. Clearly he's prone to exaggeration. But you know what else? He's not the only one. Actions speak louder than words. And Mr. Uchiha, your words are sweet as honey but your actions remind me of horse manure. Now _let me go._"

He released her.

Sakura glared at him for what felt like eternity.

He stared back. Those dark pools of eyes revealed nothing.

"Please leave me alone, Mr. Uchiha," she finally whispered.

She saw his hesitation. But then, with a bow of his head, he left.

She slowly sank back into her seat and looked at the papers scattered across her desk. A few minutes later, she was still staring at them when Mr. Uzumaki came out from his office. She looked up at him, but it felt more like she was looking _through_ him. He heard everything. He had to have. She yelled at her CEO right outside his office.

Sakura closed her eyes and buried her face in her hands.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked; his voice soft as feathers.

She shook her head.

"This is probably a stupid question, but are you okay?"

She felt a warm liquid dampen her palms. Lifting her head, she saw the wetness on her skin. Lifting her fingers, she felt the tears on her cheek.

She shook her head.


	24. Troubled Thoughts

Disclaimer: i won't admit it. i refuse. It's not fair.

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><p>Warning: Angst alert. Hopefully not too bad.<p>

A/N: So. Be nice. When you read this chap. Do. Not. Kill. Me. It wouldn't be nice. Mmkay?

Holler to **JezabelStrike**! Your review made me feel much better :)

I gave you all a double length chap since there will be no update tomorrow. Enjoy.

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><p>Her boss had coaxed her into his office, sat her on the couch, and tried to get her to speak to him but she wouldn't. Eventually he left her alone. She was so ashamed, so humiliated. She came to this job with every intention of remaining as professional as possible. To not give them any reason to complain about her work. And she had been determined to work hard. She had to. Soya needed food, clothes, shelter. She needed school supplies and toys. None of which their mother was now capable of giving her.<p>

Her mother.

Sakura's shoulders shook.

Her mother.

She wondered if she even had a mother left after the car accident. Naomi Haruno was but a shadow of her old self. She did nothing but work and sleep. Work and sleep. She smiled when Soya tried to talk to her, but no longer played with her. She no longer had the energy. Two full time jobs to keep up on the bills. Just the bills. There was never enough nutritional food. Never enough clothes.

Sakura's shoulders trembled.

_She_ only had a few work clothes because she fit her mother's skirts and blouses. But Soya? The only clothes she had was the old clothes that her mother kept from when Sakura was a child. Recycled clothes. Sakura wanted more for them. More for Soya. But now? _Now?_

She wept bitterly into her hands. She was a complete failure.

_Papa. _Her shoulders heaved from the force of her sobbing. _Papa, I miss you so much. I tried so hard to be strong._

A soft touch wrapped around her shoulders. Sakura's head snapped up. Hinata's sorrowful grey eyes gazed down at her and the woman pulled her closer.

Sakura sank into the woman's bosom, threw her arms around her waist, and burst into fresh tears. Hinata murmured nothing in her ear. She just held her close and brushed a hand down her hair.

Eventually Sakura's shoulders stilled into exhaustion and she pulled herself out of Hinata's gentle embrace. She wiped the streaks of tears from her cheeks. "I'm sorry," she said; her voice still quivering. "I'm so sorry."

"For what?" Hinata asked softly.

Sakura gestured at the damp portion of the woman's blouse. "For slobbering all over you."

She didn't even glance down. "It doesn't matter."

Sakura picked at a loose thread on the button of her own shirt. "Yes, it does. I ruined it. I ruin everything."

"What a harsh thing to say."

"It's true!" She yanked at the thread so hard it snapped off. "It's always true."

Hinata pulled her hand in between her palms. "Why do you think that?"

Sakura sniffed. "I was supposed to make things right by this job. I was supposed to make everything better. But all I do is ruin it. It's driving me crazy. At first I thought I was doing great. But then Mr. Uchiha goes and mistakes me for some kind of whore. And I won't be." Sakura squeezed Hinata's pale fingers. "I won't be! I want to do this right. I want this to be the one thing that I don't mess up. So I refuse his advances over and over.

"And then, when I think I made my point, I go and accuse him of cheating on a wife he doesn't have! And then, if that's not bad enough, I mess up some more by barging into his office just when he's getting cozy with another woman and I was so confused! He had acted like he was genuinely interested in me, Hinata! At the party! So I thought, even though I wouldn't allow myself to become involved in fraternization on my job, maybe Mr. Uchiha wasn't that bad of a guy. Maybe I'd misjudged him. But obviously not. Obviously he's every bit the whore Mr. Uzumaki accused him of being. And I was blindsided. I didn't know what to think. So I lashed out and messed up again and I'm going to be fired because I can't keep my damn mouth shut! But Hinata, I can't afford to lose this job. I can't!"

The pale-eyed woman stared at her. "Naruto accused Itachi of being a whore?"

Sakura blinked. "Y-yes."

"But he's not." She frowned. "Well, not anymore." She bit her lip. "He was, I suppose. But that was only his way of dealing with…" She fell silent for a moment. "Naruto shouldn't have said that. Tell me, Sakura, this woman you caught him with. What did she look like?"

Now it was Sakura's turn to frown. "She…she had long, black hair, a full figure, blue eyes. Somewhat revealing clothes." _Somewhat?_

Hinata rolled her eyes. "That's Rina. If anybody is the whore around here, it's her." At Sakura's blank look, she continued; "Rina is the woman Itachi's father is pushing on him to marry. But Itachi doesn't like her. And that's putting it lightly. She throws herself on him every time she catches him alone but he always rejects her."

"I don't understand. Why does his father want Itachi to marry her if he doesn't like her?"

"Because Rina is heiress to Uchiha Tech's sister company, Royal Electronics. Rina's father has made an agreement with Fugaku Uchiha that if Itachi marries her, they will combine the companies. It's a business political move, nothing more."

Sakura was aghast. "And what happens if Itachi continues to refuse?"

"You have to understand. Itachi is Fugaku's pride and joy; the family genius. But Sasuke…Sasuke is the bane of their father's existence. He doesn't play by the rules. Fugaku wants him to play sports, Sasuke joins the chess club. Fugaku wants him to attend Harvard, Sasuke goes to state. Fugaku wants him to marry an approved daughter of his business partners, Sasuke marries the mother of his child; a woman with no influence and not a penny to her name.

"However, what's interesting about the two brothers is that Sasuke is the only one interested in the family business. This company is Sasuke's passion. Itachi, however, hates Uchiha Tech. He hates business."

"Then why does he run it?"

Hinata gave a small smile. "Because Itachi was ever the dutiful son. He never went against his father's will. Until…recently, that is."

"So Itachi will marry Rina out of duty to his father?" Sakura couldn't believe it. What kind of a family is this?

"Itachi has no intention of marrying Rina. He's merely stalling their engagement."

"But why?"

"Because Fugaku has no other use for Sasuke except as a manipulative tool to control Itachi. He's threatened to disown Sasuke if Itachi doesn't marry Rina."

Sakura gasped and pulled her hands back in shock. "What?"

Hinata nodded. "If Fugaku disowns Sasuke, then Sasuke will have to resign from Uchiha Tech. Itachi is trying to save his brother's position. He can't completely reject Rina because his father will disown Sasuke, but he can't marry her because he hates her. He's stuck between a rock and a hard place. So he is stalling for time to come up with a solution."

"But that, that's horrible," Sakura whispered.

"I know."

She felt new tears burn the corners of her eyes. "And I judged him so viciously."

Hinata touched her arm comfortingly. "It's an easy thing to do from an outside point of view."

"But I…I…" Sakura bowed her head. If she felt awful before, it couldn't compare to how awful she felt now.

"Do you like him?"

Her head snapped up. "What?"

Hinata squeezed her arm. "Do you like Itachi?"

"Of c-course not!" Sakura sputtered. "I have no interest in him whatsoever. Why would you think such a thing?"

The side of the other woman's lips tipped up. "Because you have awfully strong reactions to a man you have no interest in."

Sakura stared at her. Blinked. Stared at her some more. _Could she be right? Is that why I'm always losing my temper around him? Because I want him to pay attention to me?_ She shook her head. Absolutely not. No way.

But then again…

Before she could think on it any deeper, there was a knock on the office door.

"You can come in, Naruto," Hinata called out.

Her boss entered and silently shut the door behind him.

Sakura sat up straighter at the subdued expression on the blonde's face. "Is something the matter, Mr. Uzumaki?"

Blue eyes met her gaze.

She almost flinched at the troubled expression in their depths. Her chest tightened. She took a steadying breath. "I see."

She rose to walk out of the office but Hinata's hand on her arm stopped her. "What is it, Naruto? What is the matter?"

Naruto's eyes never wavered from Sakura's. "The CEO has demanded that I request your resignation, Ms. Haruno."

"I see," Sakura repeated, her voice even softer.

Hinata jumped to her feet. "The hell he has!"

Naruto winced. "I argued against it, Hinata. You know I did. But he isn't changing his mind. I've never seen him so resolute. If she doesn't resign, he will fire her himself."

Sakura swallowed, but then steeled her mind against the onslaught of new emotion racing through her head. "Very well, Mr. Uzumaki." She held out her hand to him. "It was a pleasure working for you."

He met her gaze for a long minute before taking her hand in his own. "The pleasure was mine, Sakura."


	25. Visitor

Disclaimer: Owning Naruto is SOOOOOOOO overrated. Pouts.

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><p>AN: This one is dedicated to **MidnightShadow0110** for a review that made me all bubbly inside ^^

BTW, lol, I got some seriously passionate reviews about the last chapter. Can't imagine why ;D

hugs to **misscheekiness** for another solid review :)

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><p>Her heart was heavy when she stopped by the school to pick up her little sister. But Soya – sweet, ignorant Soya – was nothing but skips and giggles as she bounded up to meet Sakura.<p>

"Sissy!" she squealed, throwing her arms around Sakura's waist.

Returning her hug, Sakura said nothing.

"Sissy, guess what?"

Sakura cleared her throat. "What, baby?"

Soya took her hand and began pulling her toward the bus-stop. "_Guess_, sissy."

Her very feet seemed too heavy to lift. "Soya, baby, I'm not in the mood to guess."

Big green eyes stared up at her. Her miniature face darkened. Hands went to skinny hips. "Why not?"

"Sissy had a long day, Soya."

The bottom lip quivered. "You…you don't wanna talk to me?"

"No, baby," Sakura reached out her hands and pulled Soya against her. "No, I love talking to my little sister. How about you just tell me what you want to and I will happily listen. Okay?"

Soya's face brightened. "Okay, sissy. Amaya want me to play at her house tomorrow. She said we can go in her pool and play in her room."

Sakura froze. She had an unbelievable urge to bang her head against something. Amaya. Amaya Uchiha. She should've known she wasn't free of that family. She couldn't possibly tell her sister that the reason she couldn't play at her friend's house was because her 'sissy' was just fired by her friend's uncle. Well, not fired, exactly, but might as well have been.

While she was having an inner tantrum in her head, Soya was practically jumping up and down. "So? So, Sissy? Can I go?"

Sakura took the coward's way out. "We have to ask Momma, baby."

Soya's shoulders fell. "Oh." Then they lifted right back up. "That's okay!" she chirped. "Momma will let me go. She let me go to the party. You just had to come with me. She lemme go again. You just have to come again." Then she grinned like all her problems were solved.

Sakura felt like taking a hammer to her skull. Visits to Amaya's house no doubt meant running into Itachi at some point in time.

"Sissy, you okay?" Soya looked at her strangely.

Sakura took her hand again and they continued to the bus-stop. "Sissy just has a headache, baby. A really big headache."

"Oh! I kiss it and make it feel better. 'Kay, sissy? 'Kay?"

If only it were that easy. "'Kay, baby."

X

X

X

When Sakura came in view of their little tan house, she stopped dead in her tracks. A jet-black Mercedes Benz coupe parked off the street. Her mother's seasoned blue Corolla looked rather beat and tired in comparison.

Sakura frowned. Who did her mother know that drove not just luxury cars, but _that_ kind of luxury car?

"Whose car is that, sissy?"

"I don't know, sweetie."

Shaking off her confusion, Sakura led her sister past the car and…well, she had every intention of leading her sister past the car but she couldn't help a little peak inside it. It was hard to squint past the tinted glass but – Sakura whistled – this car actually had leather seating. She'd never been in a car with leather seating. Her mother's car was grey cushioned and frazzled.

Jerking her head away – and Soya's hand in the process – she continued up the walkway and let them into the house.

"Momma," she called, "I'm home. I –"

She stopped. In her tracks.

Her mother sat at their dining room table across from none other than Itachi Uchiha. The man stood to his feet when she entered but her eyes darted to her mother. "I-I don't understand."

Her mother rose from her chair. Green eyes slid to Soya. "Soya, darling, will you play in your room for a little while? Momma needs to talk to your big sister."

"But who's that?" Soya pointed to Mr. Uchiha, who looked at her with a still expression.

"An acquaintance, darling."

"An acquay..acwain..a what?"

"Your room, Soya."

"Is he coming, too?"

"Who?"

"Him," Soya said, still pointing at the stranger. "I saw him at Amaya's party. 'E's her uncle."

"No," their mother said. "Amaya's uncle is staying out here with us."

"Oh. 'Kay." With a little wave, Soya ran to her room.

"Sakura." His quiet voice snapped her head in his direction. His liquid black eyes bore into hers.

She swallowed. "Why are you here, Mr. Uchiha?"

Sakura's mother sank back into her seat. "Sit down, Sakura."

"But, Momma –"

Naomi Haruno rubbed a hand over tired eyes. "Sit."

Sakura licked her lips but moved forward to pull out a seat.


	26. Responsibility

Disclaimer: I own Itachi Uchiha in my dreams *wink*

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><p>AN: Sending some love to **Lady Kaliska** for a wonderful constructive criticism! Thank you, thank you, thank you. I want everyone to know that I am very receptive to quality feedback. Whether it be complimentary or _constructively _critical. I want to become a better writer and feedback is imperative to that. That being said, feel free to make your opinions known. I may pout but I assure you, if they are nice, I will take them into high consideration. The cool thing is, i haven't gotten any nasty reviews or flames, so I'm grateful for that. It would hurt my feelings.

However! Please, please, read to enjoy. This is a first draft, post as written, work. There will be flaws. I actually am working on writing publishable material and _that_ is a whole new egg in a whole new basket. It requires much more work and attention to plot holes, characterization, motives, realism, etc. This is for kicks and giggles. I'm not going to put that much work into it. So give me feedback but don't expect miracles lol.

Oh! and sorry, i very much planned on updating yesterday but a certain young man...in my life...distracted me...lol

I'm shutting up now. You didn't click on this chapter to hear me yap.

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><p>They stared at each other across the table. Sakura sat with her arms crossed. He sat with his hands folded on the table. Her mother sat with her elbow on the table and her brow resting on her hand.<p>

Sakura cleared her throat. "What is this about, Mother?"

Naomi Haruno shook her head; head still supported by her hand. "Our guest here was on the porch waiting for me when I got home. I told him to go away. He didn't. So I left him on the porch."

Sakura glanced at Itachi who silently watched her back. _Then why is he inside now._ She half-thought her mother should have just left his butt on the porch.

Her mother must have read the questioning expression on her face because she then said, "He pounded on the door for an hour, demanding to speak with me. I finally just let him in because the racket was giving me a headache. Then he refused to say anything until he could speak to you as well." Naomi rubbed her temple. "I should have just called the police to have him dragged off the porch," she muttered.

Sakura's eyes darted back to Itachi. He simply returned her gaze with an expressionless one of his own. She sighed. "What can we help you with, Mr. Uchiha? I have resigned as you asked. What more do you want?"

Her mother's head snapped up. "Resigned?" She glared at Itachi. "You asked her to resign?"

"Yes," the Uchiha replied smoothly.

"Was she not up to your standards as an employee?" Her eyes narrowed. "I find that unlikely, Itachi Uchiha. I know my daughter well."

"Her performance was flawless."

"That's not true," Sakura said quietly.

Itachi stared her straight in the eye. "Your performance was flawless, Ms. Haruno. Any mistakes made were because of personal matters that would not have occurred if I had not made mistakes on my end. I take full blame for that."

Sakura sat back in her chair. Her brow furrowed. _He's taking the blame for my behavior? But why? My actions had been atrociously unprofessional._ In fact, her entire week or so of work, as short as it lasted, had been nothing but a disaster. "Then why did you ask me to resign?"

"Because you are carrying too much responsibility on your own."

"Excuse me?"

Her mother sat up. "What do you mean by that, Itachi?" she hissed.

Itachi's eyes slid to meet her mother's. "Sakura belongs in school, with her friends, and filling out college applications. She does not belong at Uchiha Technology, working as a secretary so that she can provide for the extras her family cannot now afford."

Naomi's hand tightened to a fist on the table. "Our financial affairs are none of your business."

The man was silent for a moment before he said, "Would you be in this financial state if your husband were well, Naomi?"

Her mother stood to her feet. "You are pushing my patience, Itachi Uchiha."

"I will take that as a no."

Sakura's mother slammed a fist on the table. "It's none of your business."

Itachi also stood up, planting both hands on the table across from her. "Yes, Naomi Haruno, it is. It is my business. It is my responsibility."

_What? _Sakura thought, stunned. _Why is it his responsibility?_

"It is _my_ responsibility," Naomi shot back. "This is my family!"

Itachi flung a hand to gesture at Sakura. "And look at the state they are in!"

Her mother stared at her. Sakura glanced down at herself. She didn't see any problem. She wore the same skirt and blouse she always wore. She wasn't too skinny.

But her mother flinched away.

"No," Itachi growled, "Look at her, Naomi. She wears the same three pairs of office clothes every day. She is too thin. So is Soya. I have seen her with my niece. The girl looks frail in comparison."

"My daughters are eating enough, Itachi."

"Really?"

Her mother's eyes flashed. "Yes."

"And what is enough? Enough for them to survive with adequate nutrition or enough for them to just avoid looking anorexic?"

Sakura gasped. "That is enough, Mr. Uchiha. Our family is not your concern. _I_ am not your concern. Why are you here?"

He looked back at her with eyes so passionately dark it seemed as though they pulled on her; beckoned to her. "To help."


	27. Inadequacies

Disclaimer: When the world ends, i suppose...

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><p>"Enough," her mother snarled. "Our family will have nothing to do with your charity."<p>

"It is not charity, Naomi. It is responsibility. Your family needs our help."

"No, we do not!"

The glare Itachi shot her mother could have melted metal. Then, he turned on his heel and walked into the kitchen. His movements were rigid and deliberate. He started with the cupboards. Reaching inside, he pulled out one box of generic cereal, then several packages of top ramen. He dropped them on the counter like they weren't worth his touch for extended periods of time.

"What are you doing?" her mother yelled; face flushed and chest heaving.

Sakura just stared in shock. What _was_ he doing?

Ignoring her mother, Itachi yanked out several cans of spaghettios, a half-used loaf of bread, pasta roni, and a few other boxes of quick meals. Then he pulled open the freezer and scowled. He slammed it shut again.

Sakura blushed. There was nothing in the freezer.

Her mother marched forward as he was pulling open the fridge. Grabbing his arm, she tried to pull him back. Itachi shrugged her off without even looking at her. Reaching inside, he pulled out two containers of spam and threw them on the floor. Then he pulled out a half-gallon of milk, looked at it, twisted off the top and poured it down the sink. "This is expired," he growled.

Naomi snatched the jug out of his hand. "Get out."

He stepped around her and reached into the fridge once more. A package containing one slice of bologna hit the floor.

Sakura sucked in a breath. _What the hell is he doing?_

"_Get out!" _her mother screamed.

Itachi shut the fridge door and stared down at the fuming woman. "No."

"Then I will call the police. You have no right to rummage through our kitchen."

The man leaned against a counter and crossed his arms. "Then call them, Naomi, call them. They can fine me, they can arrest me, then can rebuke me. But I will be back. And then you can call again. I will be back again."

"I will file a restraining order."

"Then I will send Sasuke until it expires."

"I will file a restraining order against him."

"I will send someone else." Kicking off the counter, he strode up to Sakura's mother and glared down at her. "I will continue to hound you and hound you, Naomi Haruno. I will become your personal stalker. I will ensure that every acquaintance I know will find some way to annoy the hell out of you. And I will do this until you set your pride aside and start thinking about your family."

"I do think about my family!" the woman practically screeched. "Why do you think I work two jobs? Because I like being a sleep-deprived zombie? I do everything I can to ensure my family is provided for."

Sakura saw Itachi's hand clench into fists. "What you do is not enough, Naomi! They still do not have a proper wardrobe and they still do not have adequate food."

"Adequate. Adequate?" Her mother marched up to Sakura and snatched her by the sleeve of her blouse. "She is dressed! How many women out there don't even have that much? She is fed! My children are dressed. They are not starving. It _is_ adequate. It is enough. Get out, Itachi Uchiha! I do not need your help."

Itachi's eyes narrowed. "You call top ramen, hand-me-downs, and spam adequate? Where are the grains? Where is your produce? Dairies?"

Naomi released Sakura and, grabbing the rice off the bread off the counter, she threw it straight at his chest. It hit its mark and plopped to the floor. "Grain!" she yelled.

Sakura slowly rose to her feet. _Now I know where I got my throwing impulses._

"You are settling for second best," Itachi replied, his voice icy. "A half-loaf of bread is hardly adequate."

"It is enough!"

"No, it is not."

"We are surviving," Naomi shot back.

His hand slammed down on the kitchen counter, making both women jump. "Surviving is not living. Sakura," he barked, shooting his gaze in her direction.

Sakura's eyes shot wide. "I…uh…yes?"

"Why did you apply to Uchiha Corp?"

Her gaze darted between the two enraged adults in front of her. She swallowed. Say what he wanted to hear and she would enrage her mother. Say what she wanted to hear and she would enrage Itachi. She licked her lips. Which is the safer option? "I…uh...I…" _What the hell is going on?_

He apparently had no patience for her stammering. "Tell me, Sakura, what could possibly inspire a successful high school student, well on her way to college, to drop out of school and apply for a job? What could possibly be more important than your entire future?"

Sakura lifted a nervous hand to her chest; pressing it against her pounding heart.

Itachi took a step in her direction. "What, Sakura? What is more important than everything a young woman your age could desire? School? Friends? Goals?"

"S-Soya," she whispered.

The man's glare snapped in her mother's direction. "Soya. Tell me, Naomi Haruno, how come you have no problem allowing your daughter to throw away her future but you won't accept the help that will allow her to keep it?"

Sakura sucked in a deep breath.

The blood drained from her mother's face.

"I-I don't understand." She stared at her mother. "I don't understand. What help? What is going on?"

Her former CEO returned to leaning on the counter. His dark eyes bore into her mother's. "Yes, Naomi, please, do tell. What is going on?"


	28. Selfblame

Disclaimer: When pigs fly, I suppose...

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><p>AN: A HUGE holler to **HARRY **. HOLY FREAKIN GOODNESS, GIRL! Thanks for all the love! i saw all that and i just HAD to update JUST for you!

Btw, **missjewels** also had a fabulous review and brought up SUCH a valid point that i forgot to clarify for you all! This story is placed in an american setting (alternate universe! i did warn that, lol) simply because i am too lazy to research a japanese setting. lol.

Another thanks to all my AMAZING reviewers! I've done a humiliatingly poor job at responding to individual reviews but know that they are soooooo appreciated!

Also, I _swear_ I started it with the full intention of just having fun with whatever humor i can pull out of Sakura and Itachi. However, they had other plans. So i changed it to a drama. Therefore the angst. But bear with me! It is not forever!

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><p><em>Her former CEO returned to leaning on the counter. His dark eyes bore into her mother's. "Yes, Naomi, please, do tell. What is going on?"<em>

Instead of answering, her mother began quietly returning the food to their original places in the kitchen. After she replaced the spam in the refrigerator and closed the door, she leaned her forehead against its cool metal. "Please leave, Itachi. Please."

"No," Sakura spoke up, staring at the dark-haired man. "I want to know how you know my mother."

"Because your father used to be friends with mine," he said.

_What? _"When was this?"

"Before the accident."

Sakura's hand grasped the fabric of her skirt. "Why did I never know this?"

This time her mother spoke up while still leaning against the fridge. "It was a business acquaintanceship that developed into a friendship. It wasn't something you needed to know about."

Sakura kept her eyes on Itachi. "But why do you feel responsible for our family? Just because your father was friends with mine doesn't mean you have to carry our burdens."

Itachi pinched his nose between two fingers. "It's not just that."

"Then what is it?"

"Why is your father in a coma, Sakura?"

Her mother yanked her head from the fridge. "Don't, Itachi!"

She looked between her mother and former CEO, then slowly replied, "He'd been on his way home early from work. He was hit by a drunk driver a few blocks from the house."

"That drunk driver was my father."

Sakura felt her insides turn cold.

A soft sob escaped her mother before she slid down the fridge and to the floor. There she knelt; her head buried in her hands.

"And so…" Sakura took a deep breath. "So that's why you feel responsible? Because your father…" She couldn't complete her thought. Her brain couldn't complete her thought.

Itachi's hand slid up and ran through his black hair. "My father wasn't just randomly drinking that day, Sakura."

"What do you mean?"

His eyes met hers, then looked away. "He and I…we'd gotten into an…argument. About Sasuke's position at Uchiha Tech. He was infuriated at me but I refused to accept his demands." His head tilted back as he stared up at the ceiling. "I never refuse him. I'm always the good son. The obedient son. But that day…that day he pushed me too far and I couldn't agree. So he stormed off. I assume to a bar. It wasn't many hours later that I got news of the accident."

Sakura's hand groped blindly behind her for the table so she could sink against its stabilizing strength. But she missed the table anyway and ended up plopping down onto her bum on the floor._ It makes so much more sense. Why I'd been allowed a job at Uchiha Tech despite him knowing about my age. Why he never fired me despite how much I pushed him. Why he…why he was always so interested in me in the first place. It was all out of a sense of duty to my family._ She closed her eyes. _And nothing more._

A soft touch enveloped her hand. she reopened her eyes to so Itachi kneeling in front of her; her hands cradled in his. "If it weren't for me, Sakura, my father would not have drank that day. And your father would not be in a coma. I cannot express how much that haunts me."

Sakura's heart broke at the vulnerability, the sheer regret, in the depth of his eyes. "You are not responsible for your father's actions," she whispered.

He squeezed her hand. "Nonetheless, I am responsible for doing everything in my power to make things right." Then he looked at her mother where she still sat against the refrigerator with tear trails down her cheeks. "If Naomi would let me."

Her mother sucked in a rough breath and fresh liquid filled her reddening green eyes.

"But one thing I don't understand," Itachi continued, his gaze still on her mother, "is the location of the accident."


	29. Shame

__**Disclaimer: I have officially decided that all things Naruto can be bought with chocolate. My people have contacted Kishimoto's people and we are in the stage of bargaining. I shall let you know how it goes.**

**A/N: **_So, _last chap i tried to give a holler to** .IKR**and I brutalized the penname lol. So this is my official apology.

ALSO! sending love to (takes a deep breath. I'm copy pastin' this sucker lol) **AkInA-AyUmE-ErZa-MiSaKi **for the most awesome review in the WORLD! Um, this review also included a very sweet kick in the back to get back to updating. So here it is ;)

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><p><em>"But one thing I don't understand," Itachi continued, his gaze still on her mother, "is the location of the accident."<em>

"I…what? The location?" Sakura asked.

"The accident," Itachi said, "occurred three blocks from you house. Why do you suppose that is?"

"Three blocks?" her eyes slid to her mother, who flinched under her gaze. Something deep within Sakura's chest squeezed. Pulling her hand from Itachi's, she pulled herself to her feet and walked to her mother's side. She knelt down beside the crouched woman and put her hand on Naomi's shoulder. "Mama?"

Her mother jerked away from Sakura's touch. Her shoulder began heaving from the force of her sobs.

"Mama," Sakura pleaded with her, "please talk to me."

The shoulders shook harder.

All Sakura could think about was why Itachi's father had been drunkenly driving so close to their house and so far from Uchiha _anything_ when her father hadn't even been home to meet him. Did he know that Father was getting off early that day? And he'd been on his way here to meet him? Or was there someone else in this neighborhood that the man knew? Sakura doubted that thought. Something just didn't seem quite right.

She stared at the trembling woman in front of her.

And whatever that something is, she realized, it involved her mother.

Itachi came to kneel beside her. "Naomi, you can't hold this inside forever."

Sakura glanced at him questioningly but his eyes were on her mother. _Hold what inside? How was her mother involved in this?_

Then, all at once, it clicked.

She flinched.

She scrambled to her feet. "I see," she whispered. "I see."

Too late, her mother's head snapped up. Bloodshot, green eyes stared at her daughter. "Sakura…" Her voice was weak; fragmented. "I'm so sorry."

Sakura took a deep breath.

Naomi's mouth trembled and she covered it with her hand. She began rocking back and forth. "I'm sorry," she repeated; her words became a broken record. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Sakura felt no anger. No immediate pain. All she felt was a cold, numbness sinking through her chest and gripping her heart. "My father did not mistreat you."

Her mother winced. She shook her head.

"He did not neglect you."

Again, miserably, her mother shook her head.

"I remember, once, we went to the store and you saw an expensive necklace that you loved but could not afford. I remember he worked two weeks of overtime to get you that necklace." Sakura's words were calm, measured. "He gave you everything you ever asked him for."

Releasing something between a sob and a hiccup, her mother nodded.

"Then what am I missing? Why did you cheat on my father?"

Naomi buried her face in her hands. "I don't know. I don't know."

That's when Sakura felt the foreign sensation worming its way up her spine and clenching her teeth. Disgust. For the first time in her life, she felt disgusted with her mother. "Yes, you do. And you will tell me. Why did you cheat on my father? He adored you. He hasn't been in a coma so long that I've forgotten how much he would dote on you."

"Please…"

"_Why_, Mother?"

"Because I am selfish, Sakura!" Naomi's fist slammed against the fridge behind her. "I am selfish and a fool. I've always done the right thing. Always the good thing. I love your father, Sakura. I do. But I'd never rebelled in my life and I couldn't stand it, baby. I felt suffocated. Your father gave me everything, and no, it wasn't enough, because I never did anything for myself. That wasn't his fault. It was mine. I finally rebelled and I did it to the wrong person, at the wrong time. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry, okay?" Her hands slid up to cover her face. "I'm sorry."

Itachi reached out and pulled her hands from her face and cradled them in his hands. "Naomi," he said in a gentle voice, "we can't change the past. But – "

"No!"

He sighed. "Naomi…"

"_No,_ don't you see?" Her mother's eyes were wide, desperate. "This is my fault. _I_ have to fix it. And I'm doing my best? Can't you see that? I just got an interview for a third job. I can do this. I swear I can"

Sakura saw Itachi's hands tighten over her mother's. "At what cost, Naomi? Your health as well? You're only human. You have limits. Let me help you."

"Itachi…"

"M-Mommy?" A soft voice called behind them.

Sakura spun around to see little Soya wander out of her room, clutching her purple teddy bear. Her big eyes were red rimmed with anxiety. "Soya, sweetie, can you stay in your room?"

Soya shook her head. "Is Mommy okay?"

Closing her eyes, Sakura allowed several breaths through her nose, then snapped them back open. Looking at Naomi, she saw her mother's head bowed in shame. "Mama, look at her."

Her mother's eyes slid up to meet her. They were wide.

Thrusting a finger in her sister's direction, she said, "_Look_, Mama. Look at your daughter and tell her, _tell her_, that you will not accept Mr. Uchiha's aide because even now, with her father in a _coma_, you have too much pride."

Naomi's eyes slowly moved to her youngest daughter. "I-I…" After that, her parted lips didn't close for another word. More tears welled in her eyes, and her head dropped down to rest on Itachi's hands.

Soya flew forward. "Mommy!" she cried.

Their mother released Itachi and pulled her daughter into her arms. "I'm sorry, baby, I'm so sorry."

"But…but, why you sorry, Mommy?"

But Naomi just shook her head and drew her closer. Her head settled on Soya's shoulder. "I just am, baby."

Sakura lifted her eyes from her mother and looked at the last person she expected to see in her home. Itachi Uchiha leaned back on a propped knee. The long tail of his black hair hung over his shoulder. A small warmth showed in his dark eyes. And a tiny smile pulled at his lips.


	30. Her Help

Disclaimer: My negotiations did not go through. I still don't own Itachi Uchi...AHEM...Naruto.

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><p>AN: Thanks to **Hoshino820** for a very sweet review! As well as personal apologies for the sporadic updates. My life is sporadic right now and therefore my writing is too. Expect this to continue for one, possibly two more weeks.

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><p><strong>AN#2: OMG! You guys are freakin' fabulous! We hit over 400 reviews! I LOVE YOU ALL! As my reward to you guys, we are now entering phase 2 of Tame a Secretary! The stuff you have all been waiting for! *drums start playing in the background* the real beginning of Itachi/Sakura fabulousness!**

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><p>School was out. Sakura drifted down the school hallway. Acquaintances greeted her as she passed by. She nodded at them while she clutched her textbooks to her chest. Friends stopped her, asking about her health. That was the reason for her two week absence after all – her health. Or so she told them. It wouldn't due to tell them that her family was broke. They almost lost their home. Her father was still in a coma. She'd managed to find a job and get fired. Her mother cheated on her father. Her life was in shambles. A puzzle whose pieces were scattered.<p>

She leaned against the wall of lockers and closed her eyes; squeezed them shut, rather. She felt betrayed. No, her father was betrayed but she felt the pain. The stab in the heart. Who knew her mother was capable of wielding such a knife.

A gentle hand touched her arm. "Sakura, are you okay?"

She opened her eyes to meet the dark blue ones of her best friend. "Hey, Aiko."

Her friend tucked a long strand of black hair behind her ears. "I heard you were back. But, what about…"

Sakura knew what she was asking. Aiko was her only friend who she told the real reason for her early departure from high school. She shrugged it off. "Everything is taken care of. We have help now."

Her friend squealed and clapped her hands together. "Wonderful! Now you don't have to worry about Soya anymore. And I don't have to worry about you."

Sakura turned her face away. "Yeah."

The hand returned. "That…is wonderful, isn't it?"

She nodded, but still couldn't meet Aiko's gaze. "Of course."

"Then what's wrong?"

Hesitating, Sakura finally shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it." She looked toward the end of the hallway where the exit doors were and forced a smile on her face. "Wanna walk with me outside? I have to catch the bus."

"Sakura."

"Yes, Aiko?"

"You don't have to pretend around me. You don't have to talk about it. But if you're upset, it's okay to show it."

The smile slipped from her face. Tears pricked her eyes, but she blinked them away. Finally looking at Aiko, she bit her lower lip. Her friend opened up her arms and Sakura fell into her embrace.

"You always smile, Sakura," Aiko whispered in her ear, "that's why everyone likes you. But don't forget that you have real friends too. Friends who support you."

Sakura nodded and, pulling back, swept the spare drips of liquid that escaped her eyes. "Thank you."

Aiko flashed a bright smile and looped her arm in Sakura's. "Now, come on. You have a bus to catch."

She allowed her friend to weave her through the crowded hallway and down the sidewalk leading to where the busses gathered. But they had to pass the student and visitor parking lot in order to get there. This is where they were slowed down by several huddles of female students grouped together and staring out to the lot.

"What in the world?" Aiko muttered as she tried to work her way past them.

They managed to get through to an opening on the sidewalk only for Sakura to stop dead in her tracks. Her friend huffed. "Not you t-too…oh."

'Oh' was right. The sight in the visitor parking lot would make any girl stumble over her feet and mutter a soft 'oh.'

Itachi Uchiha leaned against his black Mercedes in the first casual clothes she'd ever seen on him. Grey jeans hugged well-formed, muscular thighs. A simple black, short-sleeve shirt accentuated the firm tone of his chest and rippled forearms; arms that were smugly crossed over his chest. His silky black hair flowed from a ponytail in the upper back of his head. And his characteristic bangs shifted into dark eyes with every soft blow of the breeze.

Black eyes met hers.

Sakura's mouth went dry.

A slender brow rose.

Half the girls around her sighed.

She saw his eyes give an exasperated roll and, lifting a hand, he gestured for her with a quick crook of his fingers.

Sakura felt, rather than saw, every envious eye turn to bore holes in her person.

She felt Aiko tug on the hem of her shirt. "Do you know him?"

She slowly nodded.

"Who is he?"

Sakura dragged her eyes away from Itachi to meet those of her friend. "Remember I told you that we have help now?"

"Y-yes."

"That's him."

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><p><strong>hehe<strong>


	31. It Begins

Disclaimer: When pigs fly, I suppose. Does throwing them from a catapult count?

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><p>AN: I believe, I _BELIEVE__, _that i should be back on my regular schedule of about 3-4 updates a week. I apologize but you guys have fabulous patience! And the review response on the last chapter was spectacular!

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><p>Aiko whistled. "Are you serious? <em>Him?<em>"

"Dead serious," Sakura said.

"Who is he?"

"An acquaintance of my father." Sorta.

"Oh. I think he wants to talk to you."

Another crook of Itachi Uchiha's finger confirmed Aiko's observation.

"Yeah," Sakura said, not moving.

"Aren't you going over there?"

She shrugged non-committedly. "I don't know." _Who does he think I am? I'm not hopping to his beck and call just because he did us an obligated favor. _

"I think maybe you should. He's helping you guys –"

The earsplitting scream of a car horn sliced through the parking lot, cutting off her friend's sentence.

Sakura's eyes snapped to where the Uchiha stood calmly behind the driver door with his hand still pressed against the horn. He raised a brow. His message was clear; _Get over here or I'll make a scene._

She stomped her foot. Yeah, it was childish. But blast, the man was _arrogant._

Aiko tilted her head. "A bit demanding, isn't he?"

"You have no idea," Sakura sighed.

"Well, he's H-O-T. Don't men like that have some kind of federal license to be haughty?"

She threw her friend a dark look.

Aiko shrugged.

_HONNKKKKKKKK!_

"_I'm coming already, ya freakin' prick!" _Sakura yelled over the horn. "Aiko, the only license that man has is to be a complete pain in my behind."

"As long as he's a _helpful_ pain in your behind, I approve. Now shoo," she made waving motions with her hands. "Off to your knight-in-shining-armor. Shoo. _Shoo."_

"Aiko, I hate you."

"SHOO!"

Sakura shook her head and jogged up to where Itachi was removing his hand from the horn. "What? What do you want? What-do-you-want?"

The man leaned back against the side of his car. "I'm not very good at waiting." It was a statement made without annoyance and remorse. Simply…a statement.

"Well, I didn't ask you to wait, Mr. Uchiha. In fact, I had no idea you were out here."

"Itachi."

"What?"

"Please call me Itachi."

"Why?"

"I'm no longer your CEO. The formality is unnecessary."

"Fine. _Fine. _Now what is so important, _Itachi,_ that you have to stand out here seducing half of my school's female population?"

The man reached into his pocket and flicked up a silver credit card. "This."

She looked at the card, then back at his face. "I don't understand."

"It's a credit card."

"No way. I had nooo idea," she deadpanned. "What is the credit card for?"

His lips curled into a smirk. "Shopping."

Sakura felt her ire lift to the point she was sure she'd have a permanent tick in her temple. "You made a scene in my school parking lot to inform me that you are going shopping?"

Apparently he was having the same problem with patience because his left brow twitched. "No. We are going shopping."

"We," she stated. "As in…you and me."

"Yes."

"With whose money?"

"Saint Nick's."

She stared at him.

He stared back. His face was completely smooth of any expression.

"Are you…are you joking with me?"

"Are you asking ridiculous questions?"

Her tick doubled in intensity. "Very well. You want to go shopping with your money. What are we shopping for?"

"Lingerie."

It took several seconds for her brain to process the word his lips formed, but then a slow grin spread across her lips. "Aww, Itachi, really. You should have just said so from the beginning. It's only natural for men to struggle finding such…" she winked, "…outfits. Does your boyfriend prefer silk on you or lace?"

Watching his jaw drop was by far and wide worth the tease. Two can definitely play this game.


	32. Providing

Disclaimer: The fact that Itachi wears the most MODEST outfit of the anime is testimony that I don't own Naruto.

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><p>AN: HUGS AND KISSES TO MY REVIEWERS! YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING! Special Holler to **AkInA-AyUmE-ErZa-MiSaKi, Hisaharu**, AND, **Shaded Silvering Grey **for reviews that made my DAY!

Apologies to the wonderful followers like **CynthionaX** who desire longer chapters but are patient anyway. **I. FEEL. YOUR. PAIN. **I'm following a drabble fic that updates about four times a week at only **100 WORDS an update! **Oh my freaking insanity! I wish i could just pretend the darn fic no longer exists so it wouldn't _TORMENT ME SOOOO!_ Why the heck did i start reading it?But, alas, I am addicted. Anyway. Unfortunately, short chapters work best for keeping me motivated. If I tried to do a full chapter about once a week, procrastination will lead to the reality of a chapter once every other month, lol. But i might try it on my next fic.

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><p>It took him a solid moment to recover his composure but when he did, a rather devilish smirk spread across Itachi's face. "I see," he murmured.<p>

Sakura crossed her arms. "Don't start what you can't finish, Mr. Uchiha."

"Itachi," he smoothly corrected.

"_Itachi,_" she humored him. "Now, if you will excuse me? I have a bus to catch."

"You won't go shopping?" There was an air of silky disbelief in his voice.

"No."

He leaned back against his car and crossed his arms over his chest. The movement drew her eyes and she couldn't help a moment of appreciation. The man was well sculpted.

"Why?"

Sakura's eyes flickered back up. "Why what?"

A spark of amusement tilted his lips. "Why won't you go shopping? I assure you, money is not a problem."

"I'm sure it's not."

"Then come."

"No, Itachi."

"Why?"

"I don't have to explain why."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want to!"

"Why don't you want to? Every girl loves shopping."

Sakura hissed through her teeth. "Every girl does not love shopping."

"I've never met one yet."

"You're looking right at her."

That shut him up for about ten seconds. Then, "You don't shop."

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "This conversation is becoming rather repetitive."

"You need to go shopping."

"I don't need to do anything."

"You don't have enough clothes."

Her eyes narrowed. "That's none of your business."

"It is now."

"No, it is _not_." She turned to walk away but a gentle yet firm hold on her elbow stopped her in her tracks. Sakura spun back around to face him. "You will release me _this instant."_

The dark pools of his eyes were soft but his face was at a determined set. "Let me help you, Sakura."

"You have. You paid our hospital bills. You paid off Momma's car. You're paying half the mortgage. You offered to pay it all but Momma refused. You've done enough."

His fingers drifted down from her elbow to hold her hand. She wondered at the tingling that followed the path of his movement. "As long as there is something you need, Sakura, I have not done enough."

"I don't need anything more."

This time his smile was just that. Not a smirk. Not a grin. Just a smile. A small, knowing smile. His free hand lifted to touch the contour of her right cheek. His touch was light as a feather but it left a trail of heat. His hand moved to tuck a tendril of pink hair behind her ear. "Sakura Haruno," he said softly. "The girl who always took care of everyone else. The girl who ran the house while her mother worked two jobs. The girl who acted as mother to her little sister. The girl who sacrificed her schooling to provide for her family. The girl who always had to be strong, independent, invulnerable."

His thumb curved over her nose and drifted across her bottom lip. "Sakura, Sakura, Sakura." Her name was caressed by his voice in such a way that made warmth build in her chest. "Always the one taking care of others. Never having someone to take care of her."

"I don't need anybody." She meant to say that in a strong voice that left no room for discussion. But her voice betrayed her with a cracked whisper.

The thumb tracing the corner of her lips added just an ounce more pressure. "Let me take care of you."

"Why? Why do you want to?"

"Because you have ensnared me in a web I have no desire to escape."

Sakura stared at him for a long moment. Then she took a deep breath and stepped back from his touch. This time he let her. She took another deep breath. And then another. Eventually her heartbeat settled back into a normal rhythm.

"I'm not some tramp that I require a pimp, Itachi Uchiha," she said quietly.

He ducked his head in acquiesce. "And I am not some pimp that I would think of you as a tramp, Sakura Haruno."

She took another deep breath, then flicked her hand toward his car. "Well then?" She cleared her throat. "What are you standing around for? Take me shopping. A girl has things to do, places to be, homework to catch up on."

He chuckled. Then, walking around to the other side of his car, he opened the passenger door for her. "Now that's the Sakura I know."

She waved a hand while she slid onto the soft, leather seat. "Yeah, yeah. Now hurry up. Don't wanna keep your boyfriend waiting."

If the door shut behind her a little harder than necessary, Sakura was kind enough not to comment.


	33. Impact

Disclaimer: When Pinky and the Brain finally rule the world, i shall ask them for rights to Naruto. But until then, i don't own.

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><p><strong>*Giggles* I had fun with this one <strong>

...but, *sniffs* I didn't get my normal amount of reviewin' love last chapter...*sniffs some more* _BUT_** HUGS AND KISSES **to those that did review!

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><p>Itachi strode into the shop with easy confidence. But Sakura dug her heels in right before the glass sliding door. She stared at the store name lit over her head; <em>Gionno.<em> She recognized that brand. Everybody talked about it but nobody wore it. It was expensive. Not just the tad expensive that the slightly rich kids walked around in to show off. No. _Gionno_ was the obnoxiously expensive designer that even _they_ drooled over.

She backed up and glanced up and down the outdoor shopping center. This was not her kind of place. All the shops were brand name. They all sounded Italian. They all looked humiliatingly expensive.

Sweat trickled down the back of her neck. Not her kind of place at all.

"What are you waiting for?"

She turned back to see that her pushy escort returned outside; most likely when he saw that she had not followed him in. Sakura licked her lips. "Ah, where is the Ross?"

His nose gave the slightest scrunch. "Ross?"

"Yeah, you know, where you buy-"

"I know what Ross sells. There is no Ross around here and I wouldn't take you to one even if there was."

"There's nothing wrong with Ross," she protested.

"Agreed; when you can't afford better."

She started nodding her head only to pause at the end of his sentence. Then she glowered. "I _can't_ afford better."

Again he flashed that silver credit card between two fingers. "You're not buying."

His statement made her want to chew on nails. Why does he have to go showing off his wealth like that? Not all of us were born with silver spoons in our mouths. Not all of us got to spend daddy's money without any concern for budget limits. "I would like to go to Wal-Mart then."

"_Wal-mart?"_

"Yes."

"Why?"

"It's cheap," she practically growled.

He gave a sigh like _she_ was the one being unreasonable. "I refuse."

"It is a perfectly good store."

"Agreed; when you can't afford better."

She had a sudden urge to punch his face in. "Will you stop being so freaking repetitive?"

"When you stop being ridiculous."

"I'm not being ridiculous! Why waste money on stupid brands when I can buy everything I need at Wal-mart for a tenth the price?"

His look was one of heavy long-suffering. Kinda like he was a patient father talking to a three year old about why it's unwise to eat playdoh. "Why would you buy cheap, poor quality clothing when I can more than afford to buy you high quality clothing that will look better, feel more comfortable, and last much longer?"

Sakura clenched a chunk of her pink hair in her fist and yanked in frustration. "Because _Gionno_ designer is disgustingly expensive!"

Itachi stepped forward and patted her left cheek with his credit card. "That's why I'm buying, isn't it? Now come or you can find your own way home."

He disappeared back into the shop.

Sakura blinked. Then bristled. There were no bus-stops near this specific shopping area. Bet the jerk knew it too. She flexed her fingers and stomped inside.

Immediately she was teased with the gentle fragrance of vanilla and jasmine. A store clerk greeted her and began to approach but she waved him away. Soft lighting coaxed her attention to the many racks of carefully displayed clothes. She had to admit, a lot of it looked…rather…nice. Sakura sniffed. If she were a multi-millionaire like a certain _somebody¸_ this wouldn't feel nearly so awkward.

She shuffled forward, feeling completely out of place in her faded jeans and shabby shirt among cardigans, silk, and fancy accessories. Itachi was nowhere in sight within the large shop so she assumed he meant for her to just grab some things she liked. Wandering over to the first rack, she flipped through all the blouses in search for a simple…

She frowned and skimmed through some more. There really wasn't simple anything. Shrugging, she stepped away from that rack and moved to the next. And flinched. That one was even worse – lace and sheer fabric everywhere.

Stepping back, she folded her arms and tapped her foot – eyes skimming across the shop. Where were the t-shirts? Capris?

"See anything you like?" a velvety baritone breathed in her ear.

Sakura jumped about a foot in the and swung her arm around before her brain caught up with her instincts. The back of her fist smacked into something firm. Stumbling and a swear word registered in her ears just as she spun around the rest of the way.

Itachi's hand flew up and his head bowed so that his bangs covered his expression.

Sakura gasped. "I'm so sorry."

She tried to step forward but his spare hand flew up in a stopping gesture.

She stopped. "Itachi, I-"

His hand made the gesture again.

She shut up.

She heard him take a breath. A deep breath.

Sakura licked her lips. Then frowned. Why the heck was she feeling sorry for him? "Well, you shouldn't have snuck up on me," she snipped reproachfully.

He didn't reply.

She didn't expect him to.

Several minutes passed before the clerk finally noticed and hurried over. Sakura could see the question forming on his lips so she hurriedly shook her head. "Don't ask. Please."

The man stared at her for a second, then glanced back at Itachi. "Is there anything I can do to assist?"

"Ice," a shallow voice croaked beneath the black bangs.

Sakura didn't know whether to spout more apologies or laugh hysterically.

The clerk nodded slowly. "I…uh, will send my assistant to go and find you some." He hurried away. A moment later, a young woman with cropped black hair rushed past them with a sympathetic look for Itachi and ran out the shop.

"Itachi, I really do apologize. I never would have –"

Again the hand flashed up.

Sakura glared at him. "Well. Your manners leave much to be desired. At least let me look at the damage."

He ignored her.

Five minutes later, the assistant returned with a bag of ice wrapped in paper towels. "Here you are, sir."

He took the ice. It disappeared under his bangs.

"Is there anything else you need?" the young woman asked.

"No," he said, his voice a little stronger.

She nodded to them both and walked away.

Another minute later, Itachi straightened.

Sakura snorted in her effort to hold in her laughter.

He held the bag of ice pressed over his left eye but she could clearly see reddened, shiny skin around its edges.

There was no doubt. Itachi Uchiha will have a black eye in the morning.


	34. New Delight

Disclaimer: I'm feeling too homicidal today to have to admit to such sorrow as a disclaimer requires

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><p><strong>AN: HOLY SCRAMBOLES! You guys blew my mind with the reviews. There were too many fantabulous ones for me to single out any. Thank you, thank you, thank you!**

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><p>Sakura happily moved through the racks of clothes; inspecting a t-shirt here, frowning at a style there. Itachi stood by the shopping cart, arms crossed, back rigid, icy glare daring anybody who passed to comment on the shiny red skin blooming around his left eye.<p>

Sakura fairly shook with the effort to restrain her giggles when an old woman abruptly changed the direction of her walker after approaching too close. "You should try to be more considerate," she informed him while holding a blue strapless to her frame. "It's not their fault you snuck up on me."

"I did not 'sneak up' on you," he replied _stiffly_.

"Yes, you did." She abandoned the blue strapless for a lavender one. "If you wanted to test my reflexes, you should have just asked. _In fact,"_ she continued a bit joyfully as she tossed the lavender top in the cart, "if you had not insisted on taking me shopping in some ridiculous store that makes me uncomfortable, it would never have happened in the first place."

A long silence, then a monotone: "We are here now."

"Yes, yes," she said with dramatic seriousness as she walked toward the pants. "I suppose Target will do."

He didn't reply.

An hour and half later, the cart was half full and Sakura had finally approached the section for women's intimate apparel. She noticed the moment Itachi realized her destination because his step faltered and he blanched. Suspicion confirmed, Sakura let a delighted grin cross her face and she fairly skipped into the section.

Itachi held the cart back in the walkway. She saw his finger twitch. He abruptly spun on his heel and began studying a far off wall with earnest interest.

She skipped back to his side and grabbed his arm with a tug. "Come _on_, Itachi, I thought you were shopping with me."

"I am:" was his clipped response.

"Then come _on_."

"You are fine on your own."

Sakura's grin became positively wicked. "But you were the one who first brought up lingerie."

He threw her a glare before pinning his gaze back on his favorite wall. "I was jesting."

She made her voice wobbly and _loud_. "B-but…but, _Itachi-poo, _I want you to help me decide between a pink and a black thong!"

His dark eyes snapped to their widest capacity and he cleared his throat. Hard. "I will be looking at the electronics. Over there."

She cackled happily at his quickly departing form. The electronics were in the opposite direction.

A half an hour later, she found him staring intensely at the flickering picture of a flat screen. She blinked. Itachi Uchiha was watching Spongebob Squarepants.

She whistled under her breath.

Itachi glanced at her.

"I didn't know your tastes ran so…eloquent," she said with a nod toward the dancing cartoons.

"Hnn," he replied. "It is a ridiculous show."

Sakura nodded, "Absolutely." _That's why you were hanging on to Spongebob's every word. Itachi Uchiha likes ridiculous. What an interesting little revelation._

"Hnn." He nodded toward the cart. "You are finished?"

"Yup!"

Relief flashed through his eyes. "Good." He started to wheel the cart toward the checkout stands but Sakura jumped in his way.

"Wait!" she said.

He slowly raised a brow.

"I still have to try everything on."

His eyes drifted down to the three-quarters full cart of clothes. "Everything?"

"_Every single thing_," she smirked. "And you have the honor of telling me which ones you think properly fit."

She saw some color slip from his face. "That isn't necessary. I will wait here."

"Ah ah ah," she admonished with a wave of her finger, "you will wait outside the fitting rooms while I try on _every_ outfit and give me your full opinion like a proper shopping partner does."

"Absolutely not."

"Absolutely."

"No."

"Yes."

"I said, no."

"Yes!"

"No!"

Sakura frowned. Then she made her bottom lip tremble, rubbed her eyes to make them nice and pink, and pitched her voice for the entire store to hear; "B-but, _'tachi-poo!" _she wailed. "Why do you h-hate me? I th-thought you _l-lov-looovveed me!_ Is it c-cause I'm _faaaatt?_"

His hand slapped over her mouth.

He breathed deeply and steadily through his nose.

Ten minutes later, she flaunted her first outfit to an Itachi Uchiha who looked like he could now sympathize with alcoholics.


	35. Dress

Disclaimer: Okay, so, if i owned Naruto, this chapter would be in the anime. All the time. Therefore i do not own.

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><p>AN: I'm so glad you guys liked the spongebob thing, lol. I have to give love to **akagami hime chan **for a review that made me laugh, hysterically. **CrazyBitchWithAKunai **gets a HOLLER for the sweetest review ^_^

And, **LovegoodH, this one's for you ;) I'm sure it won't disappoint. **You all should be thanking LovegoodH, cause i wasn't going to have a fitting room scene until i read the review she left.

And for all of you who have been begging...

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><p>"Itachi."<p>

"Hnn."

Sakura blew air out through her nose. "You're not paying attention."

He flipped the page of a magazine he'd acquired while she was in the fitting rooms."I'm aware of that."

"I would like your opinion on this dress."

He flipped another page. "You don't want my opinion on that dress."

Sakura glanced down at the black sundress with pink flowers circling beneath her breasts. She hesitated when she realized she meant what she was about to say. "Actually, I do."

So far her shopping benefactor had proved a difficult opinion giver. It took her several outfits to unravel his code. If something looked average, she received a half-glance and a grunt. If something looked good, he gave a full glance and a nod. If it looked positively awful, he barely acknowledged her and gave a twirl of the finger to indicate she should turn around and change as quickly as possible.

So far, the system had worked fine. Until this dress. She came out wearing it. He glanced up and returned to his magazine without further indication of his opinion.

This annoyed Sakura. Out of all the outfits in that shopping cart, this was her favorite and she wanted his thoughts, blast him.

"Itachi."

"Hmm?"

"What do you think of the dress?"

This time he looked up, giving her his full opinion. "Why do you care what I think? You never wanted to go shopping in the first place. The least amount of fuss should be preferable to you."

Sakura pursed her lips. Good _grief_, this man was a…a…_grrhhh. _There are no words to adequately describe him. "Fine," she growled, "_fine._ I don't need your dumb opinion anyway. Why don't you just go back to electronics and make love to Spongebob. He's clearly the more appealing of the two of us."

Spinning on her heel, she marched back to the fitting rooms. Or tried to until a grip on her forearm stopped her half-way. Before she could startle, she was yanked back into a firm, very firm, chest. A low voice murmured in her ear; "Are you jealous, Sakura Haruno? Of Spongebob?"

She rolled her eyes. "Get a life, Itachi. Please."

His mouth lowered until she felt his warm breath ghosting against her neck. "I have one. And I tried to invite Spongebob into it but he said Patrick was too possessive. I'm afraid you need not fear competition."

Sakura stared straight ahead, processing his words. Then, she nearly choked on the giggle that rose in her chest.

"Would you still like my opinion on that dress?"

The heat against her neck grew more heated with each of his words and she felt her knees weaken. "I..uh…I don't need - "

She almost fell against his chest when she felt strong arms circle around her waist and grip firmly. Her stomach fluttered beneath his hands. "It hugs you perfectly right…here." He emphasized his words by drawing his fingers lightly over her abdomen.

Sakura swallowed.

But he wasn't finished. His hands trailed back and ran with feather-light touches down her sides to rest gently against her upper thighs. "Where the dress flares out here accentuates your natural frame and draws the eye to your curves."

His hands rose again, leaving a flaming trail of heat in their wake. They slid under her arms and rested above her rib cage. "The flowers match your hair beautifully but…" his fingers moved forward till they barely reached the swell of her breasts, "well, they don't do you justice. Nothing could. But it's adequate." And the fingers safely retreated.

He stepped back.

Sakura almost crumpled to the floor from legs replaced with jelly, a hammering heartbeat, and most of her body swallowed in steady warmth. The heat of his breath returned to her ear; "Shall we try on the next outfit."

She swallowed. Again. "I…uh…no, I think that was the last one."

"Excellent."

Sakura fled into the fitting room only to lean against the wall and slide to the floor with a hand clasped over her heart.

_Damn._


	36. Resentment

Disclaimer: According to **Shaded Silvering Grey**, the skies are falling ;P So maybe now I have a chance to own Naruto? *sighs* i didn't think so.

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><p>AN: hey, this isn't one of my humor chapters, so...just felt i should warn you! Also, updates are a tad bit less often than normal simply because this story is at a point i have to think over the plot a bit more, so i require a little more time between updates right now than i did before. Sorry. But i tried to give you a slightly longer chapter to make up for it. Slightly.

Oh, and love to **JaggerMania****, **for joining the itachi/sakura cult. Congratulations, lol.

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><p>Dead silence reigned in the car as Itachi drove her home. Sakura occasionally glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes. His black ponytail hung loosely over his shoulder, his hands relaxed on the steering wheel, and his eyes focused on the road.<p>

His gaze shifted to her and he gave a small smirk before returning his attention outside.

Sakura snapped her eyes forward. Her brain returned to his little stunt outside the dressing rooms and her stomach immediately dove for her toes and ricocheted back up to her throat.

That, that…was not fair.

At all.

She should have stopped him. Or at least popped his other eye black and blue - anything except stand there and melt into a pile of goo.

She exhaled.

The intention was to make the shopping experience so traumatic to him that he would never pressure her to go again. So how did it backfire on her? How did _everything_ involving the name Itachi Uchiha backfire on her? Was it his personal goal to make her life complicated, uncertain, and beyond confusing? A game of amusement he's playing? Or was he genuine?

She used to believe that people were as simple as they appeared. There's no need to question face-value. It was easy, wasn't it? Itachi is a stereotypical hotshot playboy and her mother the hardworking wife with a comatose husband. Nothing hard about that. Until Itachi shows an amazing depth of generosity and her mother turns out to be an adulterer.

When had her life switched upside down from everything she was comfortable with?

Her chest squeezed and she absently rubbed it.

When had life become so…painful?

Her world used to be so small and unimportant; babysitting her bratty little sister, choosing a dress for the school dance, getting good grades to make her…

Her eyes pricked and she squeezed away the looming tears.

Good grades to make her father proud.

Every day a good school report came in the mail, he would take her for ice-cream at their favorite dairy. He would dip his finger in cold treat and smear it on her nose. He would steal from her bowl and she would snatch ice-cream from his. Then he would take her to the park to tease the ducks with bread crumbs or, as she got older, just dip their feet in the lake.

A grade report came in the mail two days ago. And he wasn't there to chide her for the slipping grades. Or hug her until she finished reeling from his disappointment and felt confident enough to try again. He wasn't there to take her to the park anymore. It was their special tradition; good grades or no.

It was an old, dusty tradition that she wrapped up in a cardboard box and hid away in the darkest corner of her heart's closet. He wasn't conscious to spend time with her. He was in a coma. He was a shell of flesh that couldn't talk to her, couldn't tease her, couldn't comfort her. And all because her mother…if it wasn't for her mother…

…her mother.

With an out lash of energy, Sakura slammed her fist on the dashboard. Then she covered her face with her hands and burst into tears. She hated her mother. She _hated_ her.

If her driver was upset about her attempt to put a dent in his car, he didn't say anything. He kept driving.

And Sakura kept weeping.

Many minutes passed before her tears reduced to small sniffles. Eventually she was able to lower her hands and stare at her feet, silently daring Itachi to rebuke her. But he didn't. He didn't so much as glance in her direction.

It took them fifteen more minutes to reach her house. Far longer than it should have. She quietly wondered if he was taking a long route on purpose; to give her time to compose herself.

Whatever the case, his Mercedes finally pulled into her driveway. She stiffened upon seeing the car beside them. But there was no avoiding crossing her mother's path. She no longer worked two jobs. She had agreed not to; no longer _needed _to. Itachi wanted her to spend more time with her family; to rebuild relationships.

But Sakura refused to spend time with her. She avoided her mother at every turn. She ate her food in her room. She did her homework in her room. She grieved in her room. She no longer knew Naomi Sakura. And she wanted nothing to do with the cheater who had taken over her mother's body.

It took Sakura another few minutes to realize the car was parked but neither she nor Itachi had moved. She glanced at him to find him studying her in return.

She turned away from the gentle worry in his black orbs.

Crossing her arms, she put on her stoniest expression and glared out her window. Beyond that, she didn't move. Couldn't.

She didn't want to face the inside of her own home.

Suddenly, the Itachi shifted the gears and backed the car out of the driveway.

Her head snapped around. "What are you doing?"

He kept his eyes on the road but replied, "You are not ready to return home. So I'm taking you somewhere else."

"Where?"

He ignored her question.


	37. Mikoto

Disclaimer: grrrhhh, can't a girl just make-believe?

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>AN: *ducks under the barrage of furious readers throwing their laptops* Okay, okay, i'm a bad girl. *slaps hand* I'm a miserable updater. I don't deserve to have such dedicated fans of this story. You all are amazing. In my defense (I **am** the excuse queen) my laptop has been in the hospital these last two weeks and i've been relying on my roommate's laptop, which i kinda have have mild tinge of absolute hatred for. so i've been an unmotivated writer lately. anyway, **Shaded Silvering Grey**_finally gave me a kick in the butt so i've gotten off my lazy bazooka and back to work._ Hugs to **xl3utterflyx **for an excellent critique. Points noted.

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><p>When Itachi pulled the car up to the Uchiha mansion and shifted into park, Sakura frowned. "Why are we here?"<p>

"There is someone I want you to meet," he said. Then he stepped out and opened her door for her.

She hesitated.

A small smile tilted his lips. "I promise that nothing in this house will bite you."

Sakura rolled her eyes and hopped out. The man didn't have to be a snob about everything.

She followed him inside where he proceeded to give her what seemed like a tour of the mansion. He took her to a rather extravagant library where bookshelves rose from floor to vaulted ceiling, past an expansive office, upstairs where he knocked on some doors and peaked into others.

Finally, after Itachi re-emerged from another room with a frown on his face, Sakura lost her patience. "Call them."

He blinked at her. "Call who?"

"Whoever it is you are looking for. Call them already."

He shook his head. "There's no point. She never pays attention to her cell phone. I don't understand. She's always home in the evening." Then his dark eyes brightened. "But Sasuke might know…" He flipped out a cell from back pocket and dialed a number. He stood with one hand on his hip and the other holding the phone to his ear while he waited. Then, "Sasuke, where's Mother?...She's what?...For who's…but she can't…" His brow furrowed."You know she'll burn the whole place down…" He groaned and put away the phone. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment and pinched the bridge of his nose.

Sakura waited with both brows raised until his eyes finally snapped open and he strode down the hall. Itachi led her back downstairs and down another hallway.

The first thing she noticed was the sheer size of the kitchen. Elegant cabinetry stretched through a space almost as big as Sakura's house. Beautiful granite countertop swirled across the cabinets and the stainless steel appliances appeared top of the line.

However, it was the woman humming away in front of a completely disorganized array of containers, bowls and scattered white powder that proved to be the kitchen's focal point. As Itachi brought her forward, Sakura realized the white powder was actually flour and all bowls and containers seemed to be some sort of baking project gone awry.

The black-haired woman appeared so caught up in mashing some sort of - Sakura squinted - dough?...that she didn't notice their approach until Itachi politely cleared his throat.

The woman glanced up and a wide smile split her face. "Itachi! How are you, darling?" Lively black eyes slid to Sakura. "And what have we here? I believe I saw you at Amaya's birthday party but I don't believe I caught your name?"

Itachi placed a hand on her shoulder. "This is Sakura, Mother. Remember Soya? Amaya's new friend? This is her older sister."

The smile slipped a little from the woman's face but immediately returned full force. "I see. Welcome to our home, Sakura. I'm Mikoto. I must say, I am curious for the visit." Mikoto gave her son an intrigued perusal. "My son is not one for bringing home beautiful young ladies. Ever."

Sakura blinked and glanced at Itachi. His face was smooth as a river stone. "Mother."

The woman beamed at him. "Yes, Son?"

"Sakura knows. About Father."

This time when the smile slid from her face, it stayed off. "Everything?"

He tilted his head. "Everything."

Mikoto's now saddened eyes moved to meet Sakura's."I'm so sorry, honey."

Sakura swallowed the sudden lump in her throat and lifted a shoulder in dismissal. "It's not your fault."

Itachi's mother slowly nodded. Then she gestured toward the heap of doughy, lumpy something under her hands. "Would you like to help me? I'm making some blackberry pies for Sasuke and Kohana's anniversary tomorrow."

"Sure…" Sakura said, eyeing the woman's progress. _If that is pie dough, then I'm an elephant._ Resisting the urge to shake her head, she stepped around the kitchen island that Mikoto was working on and came to the woman's side. Better than going home, she supposed. "What would you like me to do?"

"Roll up your sleeves, honey, and wash your hands. Then I'll have you work on the filling." The woman pointed to the bowl of blackberries set off to the side.

Once Sakura finished drying her hands, she turned around and scrunched her brow. She and Mikoto were the only ones left in the kitchen. "Where's Itachi?"

His mother shrugged as her fingers dug back into her dough. "He left. Probably went to his room. I'm sure he'll be back down later."

Sakura felt her brow twitch. _He left me with his mother?_

"Okay," Mikoto said cheerfully, "grab those blackberries and mix in some sugar." She pointed to a white container off to the side.

After pulling the bowl of blackberries closer, she reached for the sugar. "How much?"

The other woman shrugged. "Till it appears adequate?"

Sakura stared at her. "Do you, uh, have a recipe?"

"No, no," Mikoto waved her off with her hands. "No need. All up here." She tapped her temple with a flour-covered finger, leaving a trail of white dust behind. "Momma's old recipes. They never fail."

"Oh…" she said slowly. "Uh…" she poured in what looked to be a cup of sugar and hoped for the best. Grabbing a spatula, she folded the sugar into the blackberry mix while watching Mikoto plop some more flour on her dough mixture.

"Now what?" Sakura asked after she thought the sugar was sufficiently mixed.

The woman's eyes drifted to the high ceiling in thought. "I recall something about lemons and cinnamon. Just, ah," she pointed to three lemons in a basket on the opposite counter, "cut them open and squeeze over the blackberries. And you'll find cinnamon sticks," she stopped to think, "…somewhere. Hmm. Forget about them. Do the lemons for now."

"All three lemons?"

"Uh, yes. Why not?"

Not knowing whether to bang her head on the counter or giggle hysterically, Sakura grabbed the lemons and a knife. She consoled herself with the fact that no matter what happened to these poor pies, she doubted she would have to eat the final product.


	38. Progress

Disclaimer: when Free Willy sprouts wings...

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><p>Don't say i never give you all longish chapters... ^^<p>

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><p>The kitchen was silent for several minutes as they prepared the food, with Mikoto occasionally giving wild instructions here and there. Sakura followed them carefully even as she held in the urge to snort several times. Her blackberry filling was beginning to resemble black bean soup more than anything.<p>

As Itachi's mother attempted to flatten her dough, she added flour or splatters of water to correct its inadequacies. Sakura was fairly sure the stuff was going to taste like chalk more than pie dough. But nonetheless, the woman appeared to be having a great deal of fun if her resumed humming were any indication, and Sakura didn't have the heart to say anything.

After smoothing the dough with a rolling pin proved unproductive, Mikoto switched to pressing it down with her fingertips. "So, tell me a little about yourself."

Sakura paused in adding some weird spice or other to her blackberry soup. "I, uh, what would you like to know?"

"Anything," the other woman said with a shrug.

"Well, I'm in my senior year of school, ready to graduate in a few months."

"What are your post-graduation plans?"

Again Sakura stilled in her movements, before placing the lid back on her spice container. It was a question she'd been trying desperately not to think about. A year ago she would have easily answered college for pre-med, but now her grades were barely good enough to avoid flunking. Her heart just wasn't in it anymore. "I…" she licked her lips, "I suppose I will find an admin job. Perhaps secretarial or receptionist."

"You have no plans for college?" Mikoto asked in an light voice tone.

Sakura flinched. She nudged around the blackberry concoction with the spatula for a moment. "I did," she said quietly, "before the accident."

Itachi's mother was silent for a while as she picked up the rolling pin for another attempt. The dough cracked and split. Mikoto sighed and worked at trying to press the edges back together. "Lost a bit of your motivation?"

Sakura shrugged. "You could say that."

"Your father's condition…it is stable?"

"I suppose."

Mikoto nodded. "Itachi updates me occasionally but I'm afraid it's a sore subject for me as well. I'm a coward for it but I try to avoid the subject."

Sakura glanced up at her, not sure whether to be surprised or offended. "Really?"

Mikoto returned her glance with a steady one of her own. "You must understand, the day of your father's accident was a painful one for me as well. Any reminder of my husband's infidelity is a hard pill for me to swallow."

Sakura looked back down at the counter. "I see."

A flour-covered hand covered her hand on the counter. "Sakura, look at me, child."

After a minute of staring hard at the granite countertop, Sakura raised her eyes.

Mikoto looked back at her with a heavy expression. "As hard as this has been for me, I can't imagine what you are feeling. To go from an honor's student and happy daughter to your father's accident and coma, to trying to hold a job to help your family, to finding out your mother cheated on your father, to watching your academic dreams slip out of your fingers. You are too young to carry such burdens."

Sakura said nothing. Her gaze dropped back to the counter.

Itachi's mother squeezed her hand. "How are you taking the news of what your mother did?"

Sakura's back, legs, arm, and neck stiffened. Her fingers grew rigid. "I hate her," she hissed. "I abhor her for what she's done. She had no right. She had no right at all. It's her fault. It's all her fault that Daddy is…Daddy is…if he…" she took a shuddering breath against the onslaught of sudden emotion that Mikoto's words triggered. "I will never forgive her. Ever."

The other woman held her hand a little longer and slowly released it. She returned to flattening her pie dough. "You sound much like my son."

"Your son?"

"Sasuke. He said much the same thing when he learned about what Fugaku had done. He still doesn't speak with his father."

_Just Sasuke?_ Sakura wondered. "What about Itachi?"

Mikoto tried to lift the edges of the pie crust to raise it from the counter but the dough stubbornly stuck to. "My eldest is not one for such words. He will speak to his father about business but that's it. He released his pain in other…ways."

"I don't understand."

The woman began scraping the dough from the counter and wadding the scraps back into a ball. "After the accident, Sasuke became a simmering pot of anger. But Itachi, Itachi went looking for distractions. And he found it. In women."

Sakura stared at Mikoto as her mind remembered the words Hinata had spoken to her before; _'That was only his way of dealing with…'_ Sakura had wondered what Naruto's wife had been about to say in his office but the woman never clarified. But now she knew. Sleeping with women had been Itachi's way of dealing with his father's betrayal.

She felt the heat drain from her skin and cheeks. In all her anger and resentment towards her mother, she never once stopped to think about how much Itachi had been affected by everything. She always just…from the moment she met him, all she did was argue with him, accuse him, and lash out at him. She rejected the one who understood her pain the most.

As she watched Mikoto throw another heap of flour on the counter and drop her dough on top of it, she felt shame take the place of all her anger. "And…Itachi, he has forgiven his father?"

"He doesn't talk about it. I don't know."

Sakura went back to nudging around her blackberry mush. "And you? Have you…" She didn't know if it was right to finish her sentence.

Mikoto smiled at her. Genuinely. "Forgiven him? Absolutely not. He received a five year prison sentence for his stupidity. A light punishment if you ask me. I think he should rot in there till he's old and wrinkled and bedridden. Then he should be eaten by rats and buried with snails. But I have made the decision to forgive him. I just haven't managed it yet."

"Oh," Sakura whispered.

She felt an arm wrap around her and pull her tight against the woman's chest. "Go easy on yourself, child. Wounds such as ours take time to heal. And as healing comes, so can forgiveness." The arm tightened then released her. "Until then, rant, rave, and cry. Get it out of your system. It does you no good to fester."

As Sakura thought over her words, Mikoto picked up her dough and frowned at it. "And you know what else? Does you no good to fuss over something far beyond your ability to redeem. Sakura, child, do you know what to do when you have been trying to make pie for the last six hours and not a single batch comes out decent?"

Sakura slowly shook her head.

Mikoto dusted off her hands and pulled out a cell phone from her apron pocket. "Utilize modern technology." She punched in a number and held the cell up to her ear. After a moment, she spoke; "Kimiko, I…" she paused, "yes, I know I kicked you out of the kitchen but…the first batch burned, the second…yes…and the third batch of dough won't even flatten properly. I need you to hurry in and bake two blackberry pies for me. Don't let the boys see you. Sasuke is supposed to think I baked them…yes, I know this happened last year…will you just…I'll let you off early tomorrow. Deal. Thank you."

Mikoto tucked away the phone and grinned. "Problem solved."

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><p>apologies to those who wanted sakura tormented with the pies ;P<p> 


	39. Stories

**Disclaimer**: If I owned Naruto, then Sakura would be hysterically in love with Itachi, and Itachi would be one of the main MAIN characters and he would never wear that blasted Akatsuki cloak because it hides for too much of his handsome physique. MMKay? Therefore, it is understood - i do not own Naruto. Hmmm, oh! and Neji would have a more common role too because he's lovely eye candy as well *wink*

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><p><strong>an: **Hugs to **olol **for a sweet review!

And i do apologize for not responding to reviews. Thank you for them all! But i am trying to do a better job updating :)

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><p>Once Mikoto solved her pie dilemma, she and Sakura sat down at the breakfast table on the far side of the kitchen. It was there that Itachi's mother got to really talking; delighting her guest with the stories she told. The woman seemed, in particular, to be focusing on stories involving her eldest son.<p>

Sakura learned about Itachi's first "girlfriend;" a little eight year-old that he kept around because she liked Looney Tunes and Rugrats as much as he did. It couldn't help but remind her of the Spongebob incident earlier that day. She laughed hysterically when Mikoto told her that as much as she tried to maintain a healthy diet for her children, her eldest had a soft spot for sweets. He was always stealing cookies and candies from the kitchen. And, once, when he was twelve, she made the mistake of forbidding him cold-turkey and emptied the house of all sweets. She woke up one night to the smoke alarm and thought the house was on fire. It turned out that Itachi had researched a candy recipe and snuck into the kitchen in the middle of the night to make it. The source of the smoke was burnt sugar in a pot charred beyond repair.

As Sakura was still clutching her stomach from laughter, Mikoto's eyes twinkled. "If you think that's funny, let me tell you about the time he tried to boil hotdogs. The problem was, he didn't realize the process of boiling required water. So when he – "

The sound of footsteps rushing across the kitchen floor caught Sakura's ear just before a hand clamped over Mikoto's mouth. "Mother," Itachi said very slowly, very deliberately; face smoothed with barely preserved dignity, "I thought we agreed years ago that such stories are classified?"

Sakura dissolved into another fit of laughter. "So they're true?"

Itachi's look was that of long-suffering as he removed his hand from his mother's mouth. He frowned at Mikoto. "I leave her with you to comfort and you betray me like this?"

His mother shrugged innocently. "I had to entertain her with something. At least I didn't tell her about the time when you were four and you bit a jalapeño and – "

"So!" Itachi interrupted loudly. "How did the pies come along?"

"Excellent," Mikoto replied with a clap of her hands. "I have hidden them away for Sasuke's anniversary tomorrow. I must say, I think this is my best batch yet."

Sakura resisted the urge to snicker.

"Right," Itachi deadpanned.

"Mmhmm," the woman nodded. "Oh! Sakura, did I tell you about the first time I ever fed Itachi apple pie? He was so excited that he grabbed the entire bowl and smashed it into his face, trying to – "

Sakura suddenly found herself being snatched to her feet and all but dragged away from the table by her elbow. "We are leaving now," Itachi hissed beside her.

She barely had time to wave goodbye to Mikoto as the man made his escape. His mother winked back at her.

By the time they left the house and Itachi opened the passenger door of his Mercedes for her, Sakura was clutching a stitch in her side and wiping away tears of mirth from her eyes. "Your mother," she giggled, "is charming."

"My mother," Itachi said as he slid into his seat and fastened his seatbelt, "is the biggest tattle you'll ever meet. If you don't want the world to know, don't let her hear it, see it, or in any way learn about it. Her mouth has no filter."

"Uh-huh." Sakura grinned. "So do tell. Do you still dance around to Barney songs?"

Itachi smacked his head against the steering wheel so hard the horn went off. "I was _five_," he groaned.


	40. Apologies

Disclaimer: I caneth noteth claimeth thiseth amazingeth animeth aseth my owneth

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><p>AN: YOU. ALL. ARE. AMAZING! Wow, all the reviews! Hugs and Kisses to **Angel of Darkness and Light** cause I luv them long, sweet reviews!

As my reward to my faithful minions, I present another decent length chapter full of Itachi/Sakura goodness!

Oh, um, i tried to get more details on some of the stories for those who wanted it but Itachi wasn't budging ^-^

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><p>Though she nagged him the best she could, Itachi refused to tell her what happened after he bit the jalapeño. Though he hinted that it involved a great deal of ice-cream. When she begged to know what happened to the hot dogs, he shut his mouth and would not budge. Sakura gave up after a while. She simply chose to amuse herself with happy thoughts of a little Itachi hopping around the living room to barney songs while wearing nothing but his underwear. The image was so amusing that she broke into random giggles every once in a while. This earned her odd looks from her driver but he was clearly too afraid of being traumatized again to ask.<p>

After a while, Sakura settled down and Itachi was able to drive in silence. But she couldn't quite hide the little grin that kept slipping across her face. Who knew the stoic but flirty CEO was such a little adventurer as a child?

When he finally pulled up her driveway, Sakura was relaxed with contentment. They sat in silence for several moments before she finally said, "Thank you for taking me to see your mother. She's an amazing woman."

He gave her a small smile. "I'm glad she was able to make you laugh."

Sakura lowered her gaze to fiddle with her nails. "Was that your intention? To cheer me up?"

He didn't say anything in reply. Just sat beside her.

"It worked," she whispered, peaking up at him.

His smile grew just a little bit. "Good."

Unable to figure out what to do with her hands, Sakura allowed her fingertips to skim over the dashboard. "I want to apologize for my behavior today. You just wanted to help me and I made things so difficult."

When he didn't respond to that either, she glanced over at Itachi to find him studying her in return. She winced at the swelling under his dark bangs. She tentatively raised her hand to hover near the discolored skin of his left eye. "Your mother didn't seem to notice this."

He shrugged. "She knows to keep such inquisitions quiet until a more private opportunity arises. No doubt she will bombard me with questions and rebukes the second I return."

Sakura smiled at the thought of the sweet Mikoto chiding her eldest. But she still felt a tingle of guilt. "I apologize for that as well. I would never hit you on purpose."

Itachi's hand came up and smoothly cradled hers in his. "I'm the one who should apologize. I should have known better than to take a young woman somewhere she is uncomfortable and expect to come out unscathed."

Sakura could only marvel at the warmth of his hand against hers. At how the touch seemed so…right. "Yes," she murmured, "I suppose you should have."

Deep pools of black liquid stared back at her. "And I should have known better to chase a beautiful secretary around her desk and hope to gain her approval."

Sakura licked her suddenly dry lips. "A grave mistake on your part."

His hand released hers so that he could brush his fingers lightly against her left cheek. "I don't know what I was thinking giving that same woman bagels and flowers and pastries."

The dryness spread through her throat. "Temporary insanity, perhaps?"

He nodded, black eyes still gazing into hers. The pad of his thumb moved to trace the curve of her jaw. "Indeed. She deserved much better. I would have gotten her the best position in my company, fiery emeralds to match the color of her eyes, vacations to any resort, any location around the world. Anything her heart desired. I would have gotten her these things, if I thought she would accept them."

Sakura swallowed. The dryness in her throat and mouth impaired her ability to speak.

His thumb moved to trace her lower lip. "A woman such as that secretary deserves the sun and the moon. And if she asked for them, I would find a way to give her both."

She cleared her throat. Twice. "I-Itachi…the things you say…I'm only seventeen. I barely know you."

This time his smile was strong; confident. "You forget how long our parents knew each other. When I was eight and you were a few months old, I held you on my lap. On the coach. Under the stern eye of your mother. When you were two and your parents would visit the estate, you used to chase me around trying to grab my hair. One time when you were three, Uchiha Tech had a family and friends barbeque. You stayed on my shoulders the whole time; you would cry every time I tried to put you down. You may barely know me, Sakura, but I've known you a _very_ long time."

"I don't remember you at all," she said, frowning.

"When you were…five or six, my father got into a large argument with yours. There was a falling out that lasted years. By the time they reconciled, your family never brought you around anymore. But your father talked about you. All the time. But…that's past." He withdrew his hand. "You should go inside."

Sakura nodded, slowly. Her hand reached for the door handle, but stopped short. "I never thought about how the affair may have affected you. I was so angry at my own mother, I didn't realize how betrayed you may feel as well."

His eyes slid away to stare at the steering wheel. After an entire minute passed, he said, "I made many mistakes in trying to pretend I didn't feel at all. Beyond that…I don't know."

Sakura chewed her lower lip. "Was I…am I…one of those mistakes?"

A long, pregnant pause followed. Itachi was silent for so long that she began to experience a sinking sensation in her chest. Then, he swung open the driver's door, got out, and walked around the car to open hers as well. Kneeling down, he reached out and cupped her face in his large hands. "Mistakes. Yes. With others. Even with how I approached you. But in how I feel about you? How I admire you? How you can drive me insane with aggravation and attraction in the same span of two minutes? With how my every desire is to fulfill your every need and every want? Never. You never were, nor ever will be, a mistake."

His words sank so deep into her soul that Sakura was left once again speechless. Her lips were parted but her mind couldn't remember how to connect syllables. Did the man read romance novels or was he just that blasted good at making a girl's heart melt? Inner Sakura was goo-brained and absolutely drooling.

Something must have shown on her face because Itachi didn't appear offended by her lack of reply. He straightened and offered his hand. After a second hesitation, she took it and he helped her to her feet.

Once he released her hand, Sakura stumbled through a meek, "goodnight," and started for the house. But when he cleared his throat, she turned back around.

He offered a shameless smirk. "Did you intend to bring in your new clothes or hope my car knows how to wear them?"

Sakura's lips parted with an "O" and a blush spread across her cheeks.


	41. Threatened

Disclaimer: I didn't own it a few months ago; that, disgustingly, has not changed.

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><p>AN: Thank you, thank you, thank you for your patience with the hiatus. I am rewarding it with a long chapter. Hugs and kisses!

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><p>x<p>

x

x

…_.my every desire is to fulfill your every need and every want._

His words echoed in Sakura's ears all that night and through school the next day. They caused her breathing to stutter and her belly to flutter. But one problem, one name, always drifted into her thoughts and soured the pink butterflies trying to dance in her heart; Rina. How could she forget, for even a moment, that Itachi was engaged?

Engaged.

Sakura stilled in the school hallway and leaned against a locker.

It didn't matter that he didn't want the engagement. He was just denying the inevitable. If he didn't marry Rina, Sasuke would lose everything. And if she understood anything about the Uchiha heir, it was that he was loyal to his family. Loyal to his brother.

Heat flared in her chest. What was that man's name? Fugaku.

Fugaku. The man had cost her too much.

First her father. The man who kissed her scrapes and twirled her in his arms. The man who would tuck her in at night – his princess – and rocked her when she woke from nightmares. Now her daddy, her prince charming, was little better than a vegetable hooked up to machines.

He was so close she could touch him.

But so far away…

And now Itachi. Sakura's hand reached up to touch her fingers over her heart. What was Itachi to her?

An associate? No. Associates don't spend hundreds of dollars in a Target shopping spree.

A friend? A benefactor?

…_.my every desire is to fulfill your every need and every want._

Was he more?

She shook her head and kept walking toward the end of the hallway.

She didn't know.

What was he to her?

What was she to him?

What were they to…each other?

So deep was she in her thoughts that she almost jumped out of her skin when she was suddenly crushed in a bone-numbing hug.

"Good afternoon, Sakura!"

Sakura closed her eyes. Oh God. "Hello, Lee," she gasped with the last air left in her lungs.

Her attacker moved back, giving her the chance to breathe again. Lee's hand clapped against her back; making her jerk forward a step. She groaned. The boy didn't know his own strength. "It's been so long since I've seen your radiant face, Sakura. Where have you been?"

She slowly turned to face him while straining a hand to massage her traumatized back muscles. "I've been around, Lee."

"I haven't seen you."

Sakura sighed. "I'm here right now, Lee."

His whole face lit up like she'd just graced his deepest dreams. "Yes. And there's something I've been wanting to ask you."

Resisting the urge to bang her head against the nearest locker, she gave a grimace that she hoped he mistook for a smile. "Yes?"

He reached into his skintight jeans and pulled out two pieces of paper, flourishing them before her eyes. "Four-Tail Reap is in town, Sakura, and I accidentally bought two tickets to their concert. I was wondering if you would like to go with me. I don't want to waste the second ticket."

Sakura shifted the weight of her backpack on her shoulders. Accidentally, her butt. Nobody _accidentally _buys two concert tickets. He bought two tickets full well knowing Four-Tail Reap was one of her favorite rock bands. But to accept his offer was far more than she was willing to deal with – concert or otherwise. Lee had been trying to ask her out since third grade and he never failed to pick up on her rejections.

"Lee," she began, "I just…I don't…" Oh how to say this without breaking the poor fool's heart. "I have a family reunion this Friday. I just won't be able to make it." All else fails, lie through the skin of your teeth.

His wide-toothed grin was not the response she was expecting. "That's great, Sakura! Cause the concert is next Friday, not this Friday."

Damn it. If she dyed her hair green and started wearing chains, would it turn him off to her? Or, disturbingly, turn him on more? "Oh," she said, "ah, well, that's even worse. You see. Because…I have a doctor's appointment next Friday."

"A doctor's appointment?" His brow wrinkled in concern. His hand holding the tickets lowered. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, yes," she said, waving her hand. "I'm fine. Everything's fine. It's just a routine checkup. You know how it is. Gotta stay healthy."

He nodded, slowly.

"Well." She flashed her brightest smile. "Must be going. Got a bus to catch."

She wanted to stab herself in the eye when she saw his face perk back up. "You're heading to the parking lot? What a coincidence. I'm headed there to. Shall I walk you, Sakura?"

Stab. Both eyes. Dead center. No need to ever see again. Blind people get by perfectly fine, every day. No worries.

As her thoughts grew increasingly ghastly, Lee practically yanked the backpack from her shoulders. "I'll carry this for you, Sakura."

"Thank you. Lee," she muttered as she trailed after his practically skipping form. Now her back _and_ shoulders ached.

Outside, Lee asked her where her bus usually parked and she pointed in the direction of east pickup lot. But then her eyes narrowed. Of course. No need for her day to be nice, quiet, and normal. No. Lee just had to come and practically bulldoze her over. And now this.

A large gaggle of girls stood on the guest parking lot sidewalk. All eyes were captured by the long-legged man leaning against a familiar, black Mercedes.

"What's going on over there," Lee asked, beside her.

Her fingers itched for the chance to strangle somebody. Or herself. She wasn't too picky right now. "Lee, may I have my backpack, please? There's something I need to take care of."

"What is it, Sakura? Anything I can help you with?"

"No, no," she quickly assured him without taking her eyes off the black-haired man feasting on the attention of hormonal teenagers. "Just somebody I need to talk to." Annoyance wove through her voice but she couldn't help it. The man was insufferable. He may not be a high class whore but he liked to set himself up for attention – even with the fading bruise on his eye.

She was tempted to make his right eye match his left.

She did understand the fascination, though. The black eye only added depth to the too-hot-for-thou persona.

"Who is that?" Lee asked.

Without answering him, Sakura wove through the crowd until she stood in front of an ebony haired junior in the middle of asking Itachi for his number. "Excuse me, Itachi, but – "

To her extreme annoyance, Sakura was cut off by a shrill voice resounding behind her. "Excuse me, little girl, but I was in the middle of speaking to that man."

Sakura's right eye twitched. Little. Girl? She whirled around to face the junior who's dark red lips were parted in a picture of dramatic hostility. "…what?"

Fingers with long, pink nails curled into a fist and settled on the girl's hips. "Can you not hear, little girl? I said I was talking to that man before you rudely stepped in front of me."

Sakura took a deep breath through her nose. She may be short, barely five foot two, but she was hardly a 'little girl.' Unfortunately, it would not due to get expelled this close to graduation because she had punched an idiot in the nose. "He's not interested in you, alright?" She raised her eyes to glare at the rest of the crowding females. "Or the rest of you. Now shoo. Shoo, you blood-sucking leaches."

"_Excuse me_?" Pink Fingernails sputtered. "What the hell did you call me, Bubblegum Hair?"

Sadly, very sadly, her patience was far too short today. Sakura leaned forward until her face was inches from the junior's. "Blood. Sucking. Leach. Now, bye."

A screech of outrage split Sakura's ears before she saw pink fingernails aimed straight at her face. She lifted a fist to block the girl's slap but it never made impact. Instead, a hand grabbed the girl's wrist and held it so tight Sakura could see the skin pale around his grip. Itachi stepped up and yanked on the wrist hard enough to make Pink Fingernails stumble to the side. Away from Sakura. Then he yanked her forward until she was inches from his dark, blazing eyes.

He said nothing but Pink Fingernails visibly swallowed.

Slowly, he released her hand.

She stumbled back two steps, turned, and fled.

The rest of the girls dispersed quickly after that.

Lee stared at the retreating fan club. "I can't believe she almost hit you, my dear Sakura!"

She inwardly winced at his word choice when she saw Itachi's head snap in his direction. "Who. Are you?"

Naïve to a fault, Lee stuck out an ecstatic hand to shake. "Lee, sir! And who might you be?"

"Itachi," he drawled, ignoring the offered hand, "Itachi Uchiha."

"Itachi Uchi…" Lee's hand sluggishly dropped. "CEO of Uchiha Tech? That Itachi Uchiha?"

Itachi raised a brow. "I know of only one."

"Uh, of course…Mr. Uchiha." Lee frowned. "My mother works for your company."

Leaning back against his car, Itachi crossed one foot over the other. "Is that so?"

"Yes, she's a financial accountant."

"Indeed." Itachi's eyes flicked to Sakura. "Shall we go?"

She tilted her head. "Go where?"

"I'll give you a ride home."

Smiling patiently, she said, "You don't have to do that, Itachi. The busses operate perfectly fine."

"I would like to."

Sakura shook her head in exasperation – and mild pleasure - and turned to Lee, who was still holding her backpack. "May I have my bag, please?"

At first the boy didn't respond. His eyes kept flicking between her and Itachi. He parted his lips to speak but nothing came out.

Seeing the possible thoughts spinning through his head, Sakura gently repeated herself.

This time he seemed to shake himself out of his reverie and held out her backpack. But when she tried to take it, his grip on the shoulder strap held firm.

"Lee?"

The bowl-haired boy jerked his head to the side. "Can…can I speak to you real quick, Sakura?"

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Itachi cross his arms. "We are pressed for time, boy."

Lee released her bag and turned to face the Uchiha. "I thought you were just taking her home."

"I am."

"Then what's the hurry?"

Itachi smiled; a cold, calculating smile. "Taking Sakura home is the highlight of my day, but it's not the sum of it. I have things to do."

Lee's widened gaze snapped back to Sakura in time to see a small flush spread across her cheeks. "It will only be a moment," he told her. "Please."

With an inner groan, Sakura lifted her backpack and pressed it against Itachi's chest. "Be a doll and take this for me."

She heard a small growl come from his throat but he grabbed the bag.

Sakura grinned at his longsuffering expression and followed Lee back toward the school. Once they rounded the corner of the building, the boy finally stopped. When he faced her, he looked like he'd swallowed something sour. "Sakura, are you well acquainted with that man?"

She blinked; thoughts still on the stoic Uchiha holding her pink backpack. "What?"

Lee gestured back toward where they came. "Itachi Uchiha. How well do you know him?"

"I…uh…reasonably, I guess."

He ran his fingers through his hair. It plopped back down to cling to his scalp. "My mother has spoken plenty about him. He is not the most reputable man."

She looked down at the pavement. So. It's the women again. "I'm aware of his reputation."

"Sakura, I don't think you should hang around him."

Her head jerked up. "Excuse me?"

He stepped forward and grabbed her right hand in his. "I…I really care about you and I'm trying to warn you. Itachi Uchiha is trouble. I don't want you hanging around him."

Sakura yanked her hand back. "I don't think you have the right to tell me who or who not to be around."

"I don't mean it like that, Sakura. I just don't want him using you."

"Using me."

"Yes! I've heard all about him. He leads women on and when he's done with them, he throws them out like yesterday's trash. I don't want you getting caught up with that."

Sakura opened her mouth to set the boy's head so straight that he'd need a neck brace, but one thought stopped her short. _I used to think exactly what Lee does. That Itachi is just a 'high-class' whore who wanted into my pants._

She allowed her eyes to soften. "Lee, I'm thankful for your concern but Itachi is simply misunderstood."

He shook his head so hard she was afraid it would fall off. "No. No, Sakura. It's true. Two employees working directly under my mother both fell for his tricks. Mom used to come home some days just raging about the Uchiha's indecency. One of the girls actually quit her job."

"I'm not downsizing what he did, Lee. But he's changed. You have to trust me on that. Itachi is not his reputation."

"He's _playing_ with you, Sakura. Stringing you along. Making you believe that he's this nice, changed guy but he really only wants you for one thing. You have to see that." He grabbed her forearms and shook her. "You have to."

"Lee!" she yelled, stumbling back, out of his reach.

"Sakura, he's not an innocent kitten that you can coo over, and snuggle with, and the worst it can do is nip your fingers," he yelled back. "He's more like a panther that looks amazing but will claw you to pieces the moment it gets hungry. You can't trust Itachi Uchiha!"

She stood there, speechless. Her cheeks felt cold and her palms tingled. Despite herself, a niggling of doubt caressed the back of her neck. _What if…what if he is right?_ No. She shook her head. She'd already spoken to Hinata about this. She'd even spoken to Itachi. He was a good man with a less than honorable past. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Right?

Lee must have seen the confusion on her face because he took a step forward. "Sakura, I only say this because I care about you. I don't want you getting hurt."

"He's not hurting me." Her voice sounded smaller, even to her ears.

Lee looked away and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yet."

_Yet. _

The word echoed around and around in her ears until she felt a headache begin to develop. "Look, I'm sorry, Lee. I have to go."

When he looked back at her, his gaze seemed distant. Dim. "Just think about it."

She gave a small nod. "I will. But I can't promise you more."

He nodded back.

Turning, she headed toward the parking lot. But she stopped when she heard him call her name. Glancing over her shoulder, she met his tired gaze. "Yes?"

He chewed on his bottom lip, then said, "I hope…I hope you are right. About him. For your sake."

She didn't know how to respond, so she just offered a little wave and continued walking. But inside, her head was spinning.

_I hope I'm right, too._


	42. Desperation

Disclaimer: When purple cats roam the moon, i will own Naruto

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><p>an: Thanks so much for the reviews! Glad to know you all are still interested. special thanks to the super faithful reviewers and followers whose names i see over and over again in the reviews! you know who you are!

uh, slight **warning**, we're getting a tad angsty. Sorry. characters are out of my control. They have taken over my fingers. They are typing their own opinions and thoughts. I claim no responsibility for the following update.

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><p>When she finally reached Itachi, Sakura's heart felt chilled and her feet dragged. Her head was spinning in circles and she couldn't make it slow down long enough to decipher what her thoughts were trying to say. Itachi was a good man. He'd helped her and her family so much in so little time. Her mother was only working one job and was now available to pick up Soya from school and spend time with her. They no longer had to worry about the hospital bills being paid. She had a closet and drawers filled with clothes and she didn't know when she would possibly wear them all. Those were all things a man did when he cared about your heart, instead of just your body.<p>

Or…or this really was just an elaborate plan to earn her trust? Was that possible? Is this what he did for all the women whose interest he wanted? No. He didn't have to. This was Itachi Uchiha. Women fell at his feet and jumped between his sheets. No elaborate wooing necessary. Sakura doubted the man ever had to work for a single woman he wanted. Except now. Except her. Was that what this was? Was she a challenge? The first girl who didn't kiss his feet that he was interested in? So now he's working a little extra harder to get what he wanted?

Sakura bit her lip.

Oh, God. What if Lee was right?

But what if he's not? She'd doubted him so many times and he patiently stood by her. Was it really fair to start doubting him again?

"What did he say?"

Sakura gave her head a quick shake. She'd been thinking so hard, she'd hardly noticed when her feet took her back to Itachi's car. And the man, if looks were to be believed, was furious. His mouth was set in a grim line. His hand gripped the handle of her bag so hard his knuckles were white.

"What did he say?" he repeated himself.

"Nothing," she said, "nothing important." She couldn't tell him what Lee suspected. She was just too confused.

He yanked open the car door and, after tossing her bag in, slammed it shut. When he turned to face her, both his hands were clenched. "You are pale as a ghost, Sakura. He upset you. His whole expression changed once he heard my name. He has something against me and I demand to know what he told you."

Her eyes snapped up to match his glare. "Demand?" she hissed. "You don't have the right to demand anything of me, Itachi Uchiha. I don't want to talk about it."

"I have the right to defend myself against people whose assumptions and gossip are constantly threatening to destroy my reputation!"

Sakura threw up her hands. "Your reputation is already destroyed, Itachi. You threw it to the dogs yourself. With every woman whose bed you jumped in, you built your own reputation. You made your own bed. So sleep in it, damn you."

Itachi drew back. The flush of anger drained from his face.

Sakura slapped her hands over her mouth.

…_oh no. Sakura, what the hell made you say that?_

He stared at her for the longest minute of her life. She could almost see his brain spinning to decipher her words. She _could_ see his eyes darkening with barely concealed hurt.

"Itachi," she whispered, "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it. I was just angry. Confused." She took a hesitant step forward and reached out to touch his sleeve. She felt tears spring in her eyes when he slapped her hand away.

She heard him take a deep breath.

"You meant every word." He grabbed the handle of the passenger side door and pulled it open. "Get in. Please. I'll take you home."

Sakura whimpered at the look on his face. Emotionless. Etched in cold stone. He'd locked himself behind his mask and snatched back her keys.

He looked away. "Please, get in."

Tears now running freely down her face, Sakura slid onto the leather seat and clutched her backpack to her chest.

He slid into the driver's side without a word. When he reached for the ignition, she couldn't handle the silence anymore. "Itachi, please. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I should never have said that. It was cruel, and hurtful, and disrespectful. I'm _sorry._"

He didn't answer her.

The Mercedes quietly pulled out of the parking lot and drove down the road.

By the time he pulled up her driveway, Sakura felt like her heart was breaking in two. He wouldn't talk to her. He wouldn't respond to any of her pleas.

After shifting into park, he stepped out of the car and pulled open her door. He wouldn't meet her eyes.

"Itachi," she pled again, "can we please talk about this? I'm sorry."

Finally, _finally, _he met her gaze. But he didn't hold it long before his eyes fell away. "Do not apologize. You spoke the truth. Yes, I made my bed. And yes, I must sleep in it. I have accepted that."

He moved back so she could step out of the car. When she did, she bowed her head. "It still wasn't fair of me to say that. I had no right."

A gentle finger tilted her head back up. His face still held no expression and his eyes just seemed tired. His hand moved from her chin to caress her cheek. "Your words did not bother me, Sakura. I cannot be angry at you for truth."

Her fingers came up to clutch his hand. "But you're still upset. I'm sorry, so sorry for anything I did that hurt you, Itachi. I really am."

His hand fell away and he reached inside his car to hand over her bag. Then he pushed the passenger side door shut. He laid a hand flat against the black paint of his hood and closed his eyes. "You know that I am not proud of my past, Sakura."

Her chest constricted. _I should never have doubted him. Why the hell did I doubt him?_

After a long moment of tense silence, he straightened and faced her. The finality on his face dragged her breath away. "I did many things I should never have done. All of which I regret. Do you know why I stopped? Do you know, Sakura, why I finally pulled my head together?"

She shook her head, too miserable to speak.

"I looked in the mirror one day and saw my father. That was the day I promised Sasuke that I would never sleep with another woman again until I married her. I've never looked back on that promise."

Sakura swallowed a hiccupping sob in her throat.

He continued as though he didn't hear the suppressed noise. "It was foolish of me, but I had hoped that you'd be able to look beyond what I've done to who I am now."

"And I c-can," Sakura stuttered desperately.

"No. You proved today that you can't." He smiled, but it was weak. Painfully weak. "And I don't blame you for that."

"Itachi…"

His hand lifted as though to touch her, but then it dropped to his side. "Have a good evening, Sakura."

"Itachi!" she cried out. Tears swallowed her eyes until the world was too blurry to see. All she heard was a car door shutting and an engine flaring to life. The soft roll of wheels on pavement and then…nothing.

Nothing but the sound of self-loathing, vicious sobs.


	43. Swimming

Disclaimer: If I owned Itachi - ahem - Naruto, then Itachi would be one of the main characters in every scene, every page, every episode. He would be everywhere and i would have lotsa nosebleeds

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><p>an: My apologies, you guys. life has been crazy beyond words. Can't promise regular updates now but i am doing my best. School? Kicking my *&!

But anyway, thank you for all the reviews. I read all of them. Many crack me up. Many have been faithful reviewers from the getgo and i love you all. Sorry i can't respond personally to each right now but i figure an update will work for now :)

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><p>She felt locked out of life. Ever since her…could she call it an argument? ...with Itachi. She'd ran inside, shoved past her questioning mother, locked herself in her room. She hadn't spoken to her mother…or Itachi…since. She hadn't been fair to him. She had been unbelievable <em>unfair<em> to him. And she was disgusted, so disgusted, with herself. Lee had tried to approach her the next day but she turned and walked the other way. It wasn't his fault for being concerned. She knew that. But everything inside of her was bitter. Angry. Disappointed.

At herself.

God, she was so angry at herself. How could she have said such horrible things to him? After all he'd done for her? She was as selfish and horrible as her mother. For all her anger at the woman, she was no better. She was worse. Itachi was a kind, dignified man who only wanted to help her and she'd spit in his face. She'd spit in his face and poured salt on his wounds. She was despicable. After all he'd done, one word from a boy she didn't even like and she'd turned against him. Once again, she just couldn't keep her damn mouth shut and this time he didn't seem so forgiving.

She hadn't seen him in two weeks.

Two. Long. Agonizing. Weeks.

And without him, she just felt so lost. She didn't realize how much a weight he'd lifted from her life with his presence in it. He provided a distraction from the pain she felt over her father's coma. He provided a solution to all their money problems. He'd changed everything.

And she chased him away.

Sakura pressed her forehead against the bus window as she waited for the right stop.

She had to make things right. She just had to. Because if she didn't… she didn't want to think about what would happen if she didn't.

When she recognized the right corner, she reached up and pulled the cord signifying for the bus driver to pause at the next bus stop. A few minutes later, she stepped off into a gentle wave of spring heat and started the long walk to the Uchiha estate.

She would beg him to forgive her, if she had to.

Twenty minutes later, she rang the doorbell to the front double doors. After a short while, an older man in a sharply pressed suit opened the door. He gave her a small nod, "How may I help you, miss?"

"I…" her voice caught in her throat. She cleared it. "I'm here to see Mr. Uchiha?"

He raised a brow that clearly meant, _which one?_

"Itachi Uchiha."

"He did not mention he was expecting any visitors today, Ma'am."

Sakura swallowed. "I…uh…that's because he's not expecting me." He opened his mouth to say something but she rushed on; "But if you just tell him that I'm here, then I'm sure he will want to see me."

"What is your name, Miss?"

"Sakura. Sakura Haruno."

He nodded and motioned her inside. Beyond the doors, he motioned to a cozy velvet chair settled against the wall. "If you will just wait here a moment, Miss Haruno, then I will inform Mr. Uchiha of your presence."

"Thank you."

He nodded again and she sat in the chair.

The minutes passed in tortuous length. Sakura wrung her hands, tapped her foot, and counted the tiles on the floor. Anything to distract her from a negative report that the man may bring back.

A light clacking of heals on the hard floor brought her eyes up to meet the sweet smile of Mikoto. "Hello, Sakura. What a pleasant surprise," Itachi's mother greeted with opened arms.

Sakura stood up to give the woman a hug. "Hi, Mrs. Uchiha."

The older woman gave her a light slap on the arm. "You are a friend of the family, Sakura. My name is Mikoto."

"Hello, Mikoto," Sakura offered.

"Excellent. Botan tells me that you are looking for my eldest?" she says with a knowing glint to her dark eyes.

"Yes. I really need to speak with him."

Mikoto grinned. "Well, he is a tad busy but nothing a little patience can't outwait. I'll take you right to him."

Sakura offered her first real smile in weeks. "Thank you so much."

Itachi's mother turned and led her through the massive house to the lawn out back. Turning left, Mikoto followed a stone walkway to a sprawling deck with an oversized pool in the back complete with shaded cabanas, outdoor furniture, and cushioned sunbeds. _A swimmer's dream, _she thought with a touch of envy.

Mikoto stopped several yards from the pool. "You'll find him there."

Sakura felt a little sweat trickle down her back. "He's swimming?"

"Mmhmm. Just wait for him to finish and he should be able to talk."

"I…uh…okay. Thank you."

"Absolutely. If there's anything else you need, just have Itachi send for me," Mikoto said as she turned back with a little wave of the hand.

"Yeah…" Sakura mumbled as she approached the pool with dragging steps.

He was the only one in the pool, which she was grateful for because there was nobody else to take note of her staring. His pale limbs cut through the water like he was born there. His strokes where on perfect harmony with each powerful kick of his legs. His head submerged and rose from the water with graceful ease as his long hair trailed behind him where it'd been loosely tied at his neck. Each stroke offered her a peak of lean, defined torso.

Sakura sank onto one of the sunbeds and watch him, transfixed as he worked numerous laps up and down the pool, never switching from the freestyle stroke. Itachi Uchiha was mesmerizing. There was no point in denying that. There was also no point in denying that the man was too hot for his own good.

Twenty minutes must have passed before he began to slow down and his strokes took a more languid pace. Finally, he reached the pool edge and stopped. Crossing both arms over the edge, he settled his forehead on his arms and breathed. He was facing the opposite side of the pool from Sakura, still not having noticed her, so she was free to admire the gentle slopes of his back and the bunched muscles of his shoulders.

Sakura groaned softly and rubbed a hand down her face. When had everything changed from him chasing her around her desk to her admiring every detail of his body and every action of his heart?

Her eyes widened. _Oh my God. _She was falling for him. No. She'd already fallen. When had it happened? When did she fall in love with Itachi Uchiha?

Her hand lowered and she raised her head to see the man pull himself out of the pool and walk toward a sunbed to grab a towel. Sakura felt a faint blush grace her cheeks. The man was wearing black shorts. Thank goodness it wasn't a speedo – she probably would have fainted right there – but this was almost as bad. If science is looking for genes that build perfection, they didn't have to look much further than the Uchiha family. Perfect build. Perfect contours. Perfect muscles that bulged as he ran the towel through dripping black hair.

Then, as he draped the towel across his shoulders, he turned around.

Coal black eyes met hers and his body went still.

Slowly, Sakura stood to her feet.

They stood there for what seemed a long eternity. Gazes locked on each other. She allowed herself to hope, just a little bit, that she would be able to make this right. But then his head bowed. Damp bangs slid forward to shield his face.

And he walked away.

Sakura was so shocked that she let him. She sank back onto the sunbed and watched as he walked down the stone pathway and disappeared inside.


	44. Unacceptable

Disclaimer: I held a gun to Kishimoto's head and he still refused to gift me ownership of Naruto. Stubborn man.

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><p><strong>AN:** Sorry, you all. I know my reviewers weren't too happy about the current state of Sakura/Itachi's relationship and...Well...yeah.

**I do feel a little clarification** is required. I know my updates are sporadic right now. I'm doing my best. I seriously considered calling it quits but i figure you all would prefer random updates to no updates at all. That being said, I appreciate feedback of any form. Love/hate. It's all cool. But understand that I'm a reader as well as a writer. I follow fanfiction on this site as well. _I understand your pain._ However. I also understand that the author has no obligation to gift me my desired update when i want it, in the way i want it. Every chapter is updated as my best at the time. I won't apologize if that's not enough.

Hugs and Kisses!

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><p>She sat there for what seemed like hours, staring in the direction he'd left. He must hate her, to ignore her like that. To not even speak a word.<p>

When Mikoto approached, she hardly noticed.

She jumped when his mother's hand touched her shoulder. Sakura looked up feeling haunted and rejected.

"Did you speak to Itachi?" the older woman asked.

Sakura winced and shook her head glumly.

A frown shadowed the woman's face. "Is everything well?"

Miserably, she shook her head.

Mikoto sat down on the sunbed beside her. "May I ask what is wrong?"

Sakura didn't answer. She couldn't. How could she say to Itachi's mother that she'd insulted her son and doubted his honor? He didn't deserve that. Mikoto didn't deserve that. And Sakura fully deserved Itachi's anger.

"Sakura?"

Pasting a huge, transparently fake smile on her face, Sakura stood to her feet. "It's nothing, Mikoto. I'm just being silly." She gave a little laugh and brushed invisible dust off her pants. "Well, best be going. Lots to do."

Mikoto's frown deepened. "Sakura – "

"_Please,_" Sakura insisted, smile slipping from her face. "I have a lot to do and refuse to intrude any longer. I'll just let myself out."

Standing to her feet, Mikoto nodded slowly. "Very well. But I insist on walking you out."

"That won't be necessary."

"It's my home and I insist."

"Then…thank you."

Mikoto tilted her head. "You're welcome." Then she led the way back into the mansion.

When they reached the front door, the woman pulled Sakura into a firm hug and whispered in her ear; "You can always talk to me, honey. No matter what happens."

Sakura cleared her throat against the lump forming there. "Thank you."

Mikoto opened the door and Sakura gave a little wave before stepping out.

X

Mikoto watched the girl walk down the driveway with slumped shoulders and a slow step. Sakura was heartbroken, that much was obvious. And somehow her son had something to do with it.

She clenched her fists at her side. And things had been going so _well. _She and Sasuke had a friendly wager going on how long it would take Itachi to propose to the pink-haired girl. Yes, she supposed they had to begin dating first. But blast it. She wanted grandchildren from her eldest already! The man was 26. He needed to settle down and she was so sure that Sakura was the one he would ultimately choose. He'd been fond of the girl all her life, after all.

And now something was wrong. Very wrong.

This was unacceptable.

And somebody was going to answer for it.

Whirling on her heel, Mikoto marched down the hall, stomped up the curving stairs and two minutes later, banged on her son's locked door.

"Just a minute," he called inside.

She wasn't interested in waiting. She banged harder.

She'd grab the spare key he didn't know about if she had to.

Seconds later, the door swung open and her irritated son stood in the threshold with a towel thrown around his waist and another drying his long hair. "What_ is it _already…" his voice trailed away as he realized who he was speaking to. He cleared his throat. "Uh… mother?"

She crossed her arms. "Let me in."

Wariness overcame his expression. "I'm dressing."

She scowled. "I don't care."

"But –"

She swatted the back of her hand on his forehead. "_Don't you 'but' me,_ young man. I don't care if you're naked as the day you were born. Move."

He stepped aside.

Mikoto strode into her son's room and yanked out the leather chair at his mahogany desk. "Sit."

The towel fell away from his hair.

His dark eyes flickered between her and the chair.

She took a dark breath.

He sat.

Satisfied, she began pacing the length of the room.

Her son sat very still with beads of water dripping down his chest from his damp hair. His gaze followed her agitated movements.

When she felt sufficiently calm enough to carry a conversation, Mikoto ground out; "What happened?"

"I don't know what –"

"Sakura, Itachi! Sakura."

He fell silent.

Silent was not acceptable.

"_Itachi!"_

"Mother…" he groaned. "Leave it alone."

Well. He didn't want to talk about it. Fine.

"Work," she said.

He turned his head away. Piercing black eyes looked ready to skewer the wall.

Nothing. "Her schooling," Mikoto said.

Not even a twitch.

"Her mother."

Nope.

"Her father."

He rolled his eyes.

"_Your _father."

The look he shot her was a mix of indignation and disbelief.

Too much reaction. Definitely something there. But not quite _it. _Very well. "Sasuke."

Itachi ran a hand down his face.

"Rina."

A muscle in his throat twitched.

Bingo. Mikoto folded her arms across her chest. "So? What did Rina do this time?"

Itachi put his elbow on the desk and leaned his head on his fist. "She did nothing, Mother."

"Oh?"

He grunted.

She felt the sudden urge to strangle him _just_ until he lost consciousness. It was like pulling teeth to get her eldest to talk when he didn't want to.

"Well. If she didn't do anything, what did you do?"

His throat muscle jerked.

Her eyes narrowed. "What _did_ you do?"

His hesitation was slight but noticeable to the mother who raised him. "I did nothing."

"You're lying."

He sighed.

"Itachi…"

"I don't want to talk about it, Mother."

"Clearly."

"Mother."

Exasperated, she held up her hands. "Fine. Fine. Don't tell me. Hold it inside. Let the girl you love walk away. Set your life on fire and fan the flames. I don't care. Has nothing to do with me anyway. I just gave birth to you. 14 hours of labor. Nauseating pain. Contractions that made me want to cut off your fathers –"

"Mother!" He jerked to his feet and pressed a hand to her mouth. "Please, Mother. _Please."_

Satisfied, she raised a brow.

He slowly removed his hand from her mouth.

She raised the other brow.

He ran a hand through his damp hair. "Rina and I…we're engaged. It will be announced next week."

A punch in the gut would have been a kinder surprise. Mikoto felt like the wind was knocked out of her esophagus. "W-what?"

He gave her a tired look. "You heard, Mother."

She grabbed the chair he'd vacated and sank into it. This was…most unexpected. "But you hate her."

He wouldn't meet her gaze.

"You must tell me why."

Instead of answering, Itachi leaned over to grab the towel that'd fallen to the floor and resumed drying his hair.

"Itachi. _Why?_"

"Why not?"

"W-why…_why not?_" she sputtered. "Are you _ill?_"

"No. It's just that there's reason to delay the inevitable," he said, walking into the bathroom and reappearing with a band he used to tie back his hair.

"No reason to…Have you gone mad?"

"Possibly."

"Itachi."

Ignoring her, he disappeared into his walk-in closet and closed the door.

Mikoto sat, fuming, while she waited for him to come back out.

A few minutes later, he strode out of his closet wearing black slacks and buttoning up a blue shirt.

"You'll break her heart," Mikoto said.

"Rina's heart is perfectly fine, I assure you."

"You deliberately misunderstood me."

"You should be specific."

"Itachi!" she snapped.

He said nothing while he slipped the last button in place. Then he sat on his bed to tie his shoes. "Sorry," he finally muttered.

"Is that what you said to Sakura when you told her you are engaged to Rina?"

"She doesn't know."

"She doesn't know?"

He shook his head.

"Then what was all that about earlier?"

"Something else."

"Something –" she stopped herself short. She was becoming repetitive. She took a breath through her nose. "Itachi. What the hell is going on? You two have an argument?"

"No. Yes. Maybe… No. There was nothing to argue about."

She wanted to gape at him. She really did. Her eldest was so confused _he _didn't even know what was going on in his head. "Are you listening to yourself?"

He yanked a shoelace unnecessarily hard. "I don't deserve her, alright? I don't. I've known it all along and now she does too. Alright? Can we stop speaking about this?"

She was thrown. Absolutely baffled. What on Earth made him think he didn't deserve Sakura? And choose Rina of all women? "Son. I don't understand."

He shut his eyes. And when he opened them again, they were cold to emotion. Even to her. "I'm done talking."

He grabbed his keys off of the desk and strode out of the room.

Mikoto remained behind, mentally reeling, and feeling every minute of her 48 years.


End file.
